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Toronto Ontario Estate Law Blog
Fiduciary Accounting – Slicing the Pie Without Causing Indigestion
Transparency has become a powerful discussion point in recent years. A lack of corporate financial transparency has arguably been the cause of many modern major financial crises and corporate bankruptcies. Whether you agree with this view or not, transparency is a hot-button issue, both socially and politically. Lack of transparency
Successfully Navigating an Estate with Foreign Assets
For many, borders between home and foreign jurisdictions increasingly matter less and are easily overlooked when acquiring new assets, like a second home in another country and bank accounts and other financial assets. Updating your estate planning to reflect the new status quo of foreign asset ownership, however, doesn’t always
Letters of Wishes: Personal Care Matters
Advance care planning is the process of planning for your future care. An important component is documenting your wishes with respect to personal care and discussing them with your attorney for personal care, your family, and your friends, as appropriate. Wishes can be expressed in your power of attorney for
Paying for What You Get: General Considerations for Compensating Executors, Trustees and Attorneys
One aspect of estate planning which is often not considered is how executors, trustees and attorneys should be compensated. Yet compensation claims are a frequent matter of contention and resentment, create disputes between executors, trustees, attorneys and beneficiaries, and can even result in litigation. Common scenarios include the executor, trustee
Globalization, Wealth Planning and the Mobile Client
The world is only getting smaller, not bigger. Technological change combined with affluence has increased our connectivity. People are travelling more and increasingly buying foreign real estate and residing in different parts of the world for extended periods of time – often in warmer climates south of the border in
Does Uncle Sam Want You? – An Update on the U.S. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”)
Many of you have no doubt heard a lot about FATCA in the press and elsewhere (for example, our June 3, 2013 blog post “What is ‘FATCA’ and What Impact Does it Have for You?”). This legislation is complex, and the questions that come to mind are: what is the
Stepping Into an Incapable Person’s Shoes
We are undoubtedly in the early stages of a surge of a substantial segment of the Canadian population reaching ages when capacity issues will start surfacing for some. With advances being made every day in all areas of health care, we will be faced with an aging population living for
Current Issues in Planning for Family Members with Disabilities
When planning for the financial security of a family member with a disability, it is important to take into account his or her unique circumstances and needs. Available planning options sometimes place a large emphasis on ensuring that income support under the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) is not jeopardized.
Tax, Tax and More Tax: Probate Fee Planning for Extra-Jurisdictional Assets
If you’ve been following the recent Federal Budget changes to testamentary trust taxation, the proposed (but now defeated) Ontario Budget with its increased taxes on higher-income earners, tobacco and airplane fuel, and the recent changes to the Ontario Estate Administration Tax Act (see my December, 2012 blog “The New Ontario
Cross-Canada Checkup: Property Rights on Marriage Breakdown and Death
Canadians are increasingly mobile within Canada. Employees are transferred and move with their families to another province, couples decide to retire in a province with a more moderate climate, or seniors decide to move to be closer to their children and grandchildren. But in changing jobs, lifestyle and family connections,
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