Articles 2020

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Today
Kira Domratchev

Is an RESP a Trust? .... And So What If It Is?

  • March 03, 2020
  • Kira Domratchev, Hull & Hull LLP

Is an RESP a trust? The answer, this author discovers, depends on the context, and maybe the province. This article aims to cut through the confusion by going back to first principles, applying them to the unique ownership features of an RESP, and then considering how the case law compares.

Student Forum, Trusts and Estates Law
Cara Zacks

Party Time? Naming Parties in a Dependant Support Application

  • March 03, 2020
  • Cara Zacks, Casey & Moss LLP

In law, sometimes the simplest questions are the most difficult to answer. This article explores why the fairly basic question of "who should I name as a party?" could yield contradictory answers in the context of a dependant's support application. In the face of a potential contradiction between the Succession Law Reform Act and the Rules of Civil Procedure, this article suggests some best practices for avoiding a last-minute adjournment of your client's application. 

Student Forum, Trusts and Estates Law

Brown Bag Lunch – December 17, 2019

  • March 03, 2020
  • Rebecca Rauws, associate, and Devin McMurtry, articling student, Hull & Hull LLP

A summary of December's Brown Bag lunch meeting of estates and trusts practitioners. Topics discussed included NoticeConnect’s Will registry and who can submit Wills to the registry, whether a drafting lawyer can still be sued in negligence if the impugned Will has been probated, probate for digital assets, and the fate of basket clauses.

Student Forum, Trusts and Estates Law
Blair L. Botsford

Real Estate Meets Trust Law: Land Registration Ontario Style

  • March 03, 2020
  • Blair L. Botsford, partner, Blaney McMurtry LLP,

Trust law can be difficult enough, but the Land Registry Office’s current approach to registering trusts (or refusing to do so) has further complicated matters, potentially obscuring the true ownership of land. This article explores the difficulties of the current treatment of trusts in the land titles system, and where that leaves lawyers interacting with the system.

Student Forum, Trusts and Estates Law

Running Your Law Practice Like a Well-Oiled Machine

  • March 03, 2020
  • Karl Kremer, business coach at The Peak Potential

A law practice is a business and needs to be treated like one. The great lawyers that are running them need to learn to be great business owners. Here are five steps to help you get your practice running like a well-oiled and profitable business.

Sole, Small Firm and General Practice, Student Forum

Development Impacts of ‘Building Transit Faster’

  • March 02, 2020
  • Signe Leisk and Marisa Keating

This article provides an overview of Bill 171, An Act to enact the Building Transit Faster Act, 2020, which was introduced on February 18, 2020.

Municipal Law, Student Forum

Construction Contracts: a Global Overview

  • March 02, 2020
  • Asad Khorasanee, contract administration and construction management professional

Construction contracts take many forms around the world. In this article, the author outlines the key elements that are common among many construction contracts, and surveys a number of international standard form contracts available to construction projects globally.

Student Forum, Young Lawyers' Division

Can the Government be ‘Cruel’ to a Corporation?

  • March 02, 2020
  • Ravi Amarnath

Can a corporation challenge a mandatory minimum fine on the basis that it infringes s. 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms? This is the question the Supreme Court of Canada will address in Attorney General of Quebec, et al. v. 9147-0732 Québec Inc., which was argued before the Supreme Court in January 2020 and is currently under reserve.

Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Law, Student Forum