The dramatic price increases in B.C. real estate over the past couple of years has affected people’s Estate planning and triggered more discussion of what to do with titles to properties they own. What we’re facing In my opinion, there is still a lot of uncertainty stemming from how owners view title and ownership of property, because they are […]
In real estate, two “levels” of ownership are legally recognized. The first is found on a title. The registered owner (or owners) have what is called “legal” title. The second level of ownership, called “beneficial” ownership, is mainly based on a person’s contributions (in many ways) to the property. In the recent case M.J. v. M.W., the […]
When two more more people apply to act as Committee over a person, Courts sometimes have trouble determining who the best person is. The Court must choose among several factors in reaching its decision. Reasons for judgement were recently released in the case Re Struthers, in which the patient had no living children, but had […]
The Wills, Estates and Succession Act is now more than two years old. One of the major changes under the Act is the new power that the Court has to (in part) declare documents not made in the “ordinary” way as “Wills.” Reasons for judgement were recently released in the case Re Hadley Estate, in […]
As our population ages and we live longer (according to the statistics, at least), it is increasingly common to prepare Powers of Attorney and Representation Agreements. The relevant legislation changed about four years ago, making Powers of Attorney strictly for managing financial matters and Representation Agreements strictly for managing health care. With cases of dementia rising […]
A recent story published in the National Post reports that an estimated 1.1 million Canadians who have a disability are not receiving the disability tax credit. That’s an average of about 100,000 people per province. This is a serious problem, and it stems from a lack of information. The disability tax credit is a Federal government benefit. As someone […]
Mid-April was not only Law Week, but also Make a Will Week. So I thought it would be fitting to discuss a recent case, Becker v. Becker. Reasons for judgement were released in March. The deceased died in 2012, having lived in a marriage-like relationship for about 27 years and without children (but with godchildren). The surviving […]
A recent article in the Victoria Times-Colonist reported that, with supply lagging, demand for real estate outside Victoria is pushing up prices. Of course, in Vancouver, with the recent news of a record number of home sales in March (and rising prices), the market continues to surprise. I doubt that anyone, even a year ago, thought […]
The National Post recently reported that Federal Finance Minister Morneau is looking for ways to enhance our Canada Pension Plan. It appears he may be ready for this challenge after tabling a budget that many seem to have liked. Enhancing the CPP will require support from seven of the 10 provinces. Talks between the Minister and […]
With the 2016 Federal budget hinting at a $29-billion deficit, I hesitate to say “Happy Easter” off the bat, but this is what the headlines said to us recently. The new Federal government, sticking to its election promises, delivered a budget with a far larger deficit than it promised. With the price of oil still down, […]