No more take-backs: Supreme Court of Canada restricts equitable remedies
Introduction In 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) released their decision in Canada (Attorney General) v Fairmont Hotels Inc., 2016 SCC 56 (“Fairmont”), in which they restricted the availability of rectification, an equitable remedy whereby the court corrects error(s)...
Special costs in BC estate litigation: Kolic v. Kolic, 2022 BCSC 1448
Pursuant to the Supreme Court Civil Rules, B.C. Reg. 168/2009, costs during litigation in British Columbia are typically awarded to the successful party at trial. Costs are intended to be at least a partial indemnity for legal fees plus reimbursement...
Spoliation: Destruction of evidence has litigation consequences
Aside perhaps from perjury, no act serves to threaten the integrity of the judicial process more than the spoliation of evidence. Our adversarial process is designed to tolerate human failings — erring judges can be reversed, uncooperative counsel can be...
Marriage-like relationships and intestate succession in BC: Coad v. Lariviere
Pursuant to British Columbia’s Wills, Estates and Succession Act, S.B.C. 2009, c. 13 (“WESA”), when a person dies without a will, that person’s surviving spouse is entitled to inherit either the entirety of the estate (if there are no descendants)...
Commencing a proceeding on behalf of the estate of a deceased person: Hoggan v. Silvey
A recent decision by the British Columbia Court of Appeal has transformed the approach for commencing a proceeding on behalf of the estate of a deceased person in British Columbia. Hoggan v. Silvey, 2022 BCCA 176, began with a dispute...
Ontario Court of Appeal confirms modern approach to cost awards in estate litigation: McGrath v. Joy
On February 10, 2022, the Ontario Court of Appeal (the “Court”) released its decision in McGrath v. Joy, 2022 ONCA 119. In this case, the applicant challenged the validity of a holograph will written shortly before the testator committed suicide...
Pia Hundal quoted in the Toronto Star on proposed law on digital wills
Toronto Star, “Proposed law on digital wills doesn’t go far enough, some legal groups say” Pia Hundal was quoted in this article on the proposed law permanently allowing for wills to be virtually witnessed: Several U.S. states, Britain and Australia...
Can a will be annulled?
Have you ever wondered whether a will can be annulled after the testator’s death? People do not always leave a will behind before they pass away. When no will can be located, the distribution of the deceased’s property is determined...
Thoughts on final resting places
Testators generally put much thought into the distribution of their estate. In addition, many testators give instructions for their funeral, how their remains are to be handled and where their remains should be placed. However, many testators may not consider...
Deception and Dower: Cases of Dower fraud in Alberta and Saskatchewan
The forms and procedures required in Alberta’s and Saskatchewan’s provincial “homestead legislation” create dower rights, which act as safeguards to protect spouses who do not own their homes (the non-owning spouse) from having their homes sold without their consent. However,...
