In 2017, the bodies of billionaires Bernard Sherman and Honey Sherman were discovered in their home in Toronto, Ontario. Not only was the couple highly acclaimed for their philanthropism, but Barry was known for his pharmaceutical pursuits as the founder and CEO of Canadian generic drug company Apotex. Police deemed the deaths of Barry and […]
The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) recently granted leave to appeal in the Sherman Estate’s legal battle to keep its probate application private. The appeal will provide the court with an opportunity to revisit the stringent legal test for sealing orders, an issue that has gone largely undiscussed for nearly two decades. Sealing orders, which […]
The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) addressed the issue of “Henson trusts” for the first time ever this January in S.A. v Metro Vancouver Housing Corp, 2019 SCC 4 [Metro Vancouver]. A Henson trust (named after the decision in Ontario (Director of Income Maintenance, Minister of Community & Social Services) v. Henson, 1987 CarswellOnt 654, [1987] O.J. No. […]
In Cowper-Smith v Morgan, 2017 SCC 61 [Cowper-Smith], the Supreme Court of Canada (“the Court”) brings back painful memories of first-year Contracts and attempts to clarify the complex equitable doctrine of propriety estoppel despite several differing interpretations. Proprietary Estoppel Estoppel is an equitable doctrine which arises when one party acts on the reliance of the promise […]
When should courts invoke public policy to interfere with testamentary freedom? The Ontario Court of Appeal (“ONCA”) recently revisited this question in Spence v BMO Trust Company, 2016 ONCA 196 [Spence]. In Spence, Mr. Spence (the testator) excluded his daughter, Verolin, and grandson, A.S., from his Will. Instead, he bequeathed his assets to his second […]
Nothing riles a family up more than a good ‘ol contested probate of will. This is especially true if there are millions to be had. This month, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (“ONCA”) issued a ruling in Neuberger v York, 2016 ONCA 191 that allows one faction of a family to challenge a will […]
One of the criticisms laid against Ontario's family law and succession law statutes is that they do not make allowance for people living in non-traditional relationships. The law provides a comprehensive formula for property division for married people when they divorce or one of them dies, but there is no similar entitlement for "common law" […]
Last month, in Spence v BMO Trust Company, 2015 ONSC 615 [Spence], the Ontario Superior Court of Justice set aside a will for being contrary to public policy, as the testator’s motivation for excluding one his daughters from his will was racially motivated.
Normal 0 Normal 0 Normal 0 Normal 0 The tangled case of Nishi v. Rascal Trucking Ltd., 2013 SCC 33, is a classic example of the complicated conflicts that can occur when people mix business dealings with personal friendships. The unanimous decision of the court appears to reaffirm the doctrine of purchase money resulting trust. […]
