Deliberate Alterations to a Will: Levesque Estate (Re), 2019 BCSC 927
A recent decision shows how the Court may find a will-maker’s handwritten changes to be legally effective. Whiting a Beneficiary Out of a Will In ... Continued
Successful Result in Halliday v. Halliday Estate, 2019 BCSC 554
In the recent BC Supreme Court case of Halliday v Halliday Estate, 2019 BCSC 554, Clark Wilson LLP was successful in challenging the validity of ... Continued
Robledano v Queano, 2019 BCCA 150 – Further Analysis of Spousal Status Issues
The British Columbia Court of Appeal recently released its judgment in Robledano v Queano, 2019 BCCA 150 (“Robledano”). The case involved an intestate estate, with ... Continued
No need for “encyclopedic knowledge” when a will-maker recounts their assets
The recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision in Quaggiotto v Quaggiotto, 2019 ONCA 107 (“Quaggiotto”) helps to clarify the level of knowledge courts expect a ... Continued
What Obligations are Owed by a Testator to a Deceased Person’s Estate?
In the Court’s determination of a wills variation claim and what is “adequate, just and equitable”, the Court will consider legal and moral obligations owed ... Continued
Resulting and Constructive Trusts: A Question of Intention
Two recent decisions from the Supreme Court of British Columbia illustrate the importance, and difficulty, of determining the intentions someone who transfers property when ownership ... Continued
The Tests for Undue Influence for Testamentary Gifts and Inter Vivos Transfers
Background In Seguin v. Pearson, 2018 ONCA 355, the appellant appealed an Ontario Superior Court of Justice decision in which the trial judge dismissed her ... Continued
Does “Death Do Us Part”? Separating the Living from the Dead in Family Law and Estate Litigation
A recent decision from the Court of Appeal for British Columbia outlines the rights and obligations between spouses in life and after death, and how ... Continued
Case Comment – Gully v Gully: Giving a Gift of Joint Tenancy Can Come Back to Bite the Donor
The case of Gully v Gully, 2018 BCSC 1590 provides useful insight on a peril of putting property into joint tenancy. The decision illustrates the ... Continued
Bouchard v. Bouchard – The Intersection of Estate Law and Family Law
The recent decent of Justice Donegan in Bouchard v. Bouchard, 2018 BCSC 1728, shows the importance of attending to the procedural and substantive law of ... Continued
Various Definitions of “Spouse”
Historically, spouses were those that had undergone a formal marriage ceremony before a religious or secular authority. We now live in a world where the ... Continued
Canadian courts espouse different tests for recognizing spouses: An update
In a recent article on our Estates & Trusts Blog, we considered what constitutes a spousal relationship under section 2 of B.C.’s Wills Estate and ... Continued