In Litigation, Does an Estate Need to be Represented by a Lawyer?
In Oommen v. Ramjohn, 2015 ABCA 34, the Alberta Court of Appeal held that an estate must be represented by a lawyer, not a self-represented litigant.
In this case heard […]
Estate Litigation
Foreign Assets and Property Distribution: Options for Consideration
Kathryn Tweedie
With globalization and an increasingly mobile population, it is becoming more common for people to own assets outside of their jurisdiction of residence. It has been clearly established that Canadian courts do not have jurisdiction over foreign assets, especially foreign […]
Executor’s Liability
Being appointed as the Executor of a deceased person’s estate is often seen as a privilege. However, that golden glow of privilege fades fast as soon as an Executor realizes […]
The Inevitability of Death
It is inevitable that each of us will die someday – the question is when. Wills and estate lawyers advise that you should have a legally valid Will prepared for […]
End of Year Resolutions: Testamentary Planning
Now that 2017 is coming to a close, it is a good idea to take stock of what was accomplished in the past year and […]
Disclosure Requirement: Onus Shift and Obligation Defined
Kathryn Tweedie
Generally, when parents are employed by an arm’s length employer, determining income for support purposes is a relatively straightforward endeavor. Not so when a parent earns […]
RRSPs: Does It Really Matter Who You Designate as Your Beneficiary?
When you set up a registered retirement savings plan (an “RRSP”), you will likely be asked who you would […]
$1 Million To Level The Playing Field
Litigation is expensive. Often in family law one party has more financial resources than the other to fund the litigation. This creates an inherent unfairness and […]
Dowry Dispute
A recent decision from the Ontario Court of Appeal (Abdollahpour v. Banifatemi, 2015 ONCA 834) dealt with the issue of dowry in the context of property division in divorce proceedings. […]
Agricultural Assets – The Farm Divorce
Alberta is a province with deep agricultural roots. Though most of us are well aware of this, many of us do not truly understand the culture or day to day operations of our agriculture community and way […]