Deadbeat

Said Brian Schnurr in his classic text Estate Litigation: "The summary procedure will continue to be an effective method to quash a frivolous will challenge." The case of Trotter v. Trotter illustrates that Schnurr's statement continues to be true.

On behalf of the Executive of the OBA Trusts & Estates Section, I am pleased to announce that Margaret O’Sullivan of O’Sullivan Estate Lawyers has been chosen to receive the 2013 OBA Award of Excellence in Trusts and Estates Law.

For those of you practising in and around Toronto there are a few changes of interest happening at the Toronto Estates Court, 7th floor, 330 University Avenue.

Divorce is no longer a rare or scandalous occurrence, but it continues to complicate the practice of wills and estates law. Whether we are drafting a will or picking up the pieces of a messy estate litigation file...

It is rare for courts to award relief or impose penalties greater than those sought by the parties themselves.

Lawyers must prepare a proper evidentiary record when capacity to make a will is at issue.

In this application to pass accounts, the beneficiaries of the estate had no objections to the accounts themselves; however, there were numerous objections raised regarding the compensation claimed....

Master Dash of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto issued a decision in November 2012 reviewing the common law principles governing the payment of life insurance policy...

In the recent case of Haines v. Haines Estate 2012 ONSC 1816, Justice Nolan had these words of caution for the litigants...

In this decision rendered in October last year the English Court of Appeal sharply rejected the practice - adopted and developed in the Family Division over 25 years - of treating the assets of a company...