Family Law › Administrative Law › Wills, Trusts, & Estate Planning

Controversial Legislative Amendments on Ice

On February 1, 2012, the new Wills and Succession Act (“WSA”) came into force, consolidating succession legislation in Alberta. The legislation – as originally unveiled - included significant amendments to portions of the...more

No Divorce from Spouse #1? Common Law Spouse #2 Not Entitled to Pre-Retirement Death Benefits

In the recent case of Carrigan v. Carrigan Estate, the Ontario Court of Appeal has effectively re-written the law on pre-retirement death benefits under the Ontario Pension Benefits Act (the PBA)....more

Windfalls Erased For Divorcing Spouses [Florida]

More often than not, spouses name each other as beneficiaries on various testamentary documents. Through inadvertence, oversight, or just bad timing (i.e., dying too fast) they often do not get around to removing a former...more

What Do Your Twitter Stats Really Mean?

To anyone on Twitter, raise your hand if you don’t pay attention to your number of followers. No matter how not vain you claim to be, your follower number is something that tugs oh-so-gently at your consciousness. To those...more

Third-Party Special Needs Trusts vs. First- Party Special Needs Trusts

There are two types of special needs trusts – one designed to hold assets gifted or bequeathed to a person with special needs from a third party (a “Third-Party Special Needs Trust”), and one designed to hold assets that are...more

In The Matter Of The Trusts To Be Established In The Matter Of The Estate Of Margaret A. Flood

Order

On July 10, 2009, Judge Patricia Del Bueno Cleary, a Superior Court Judge in Monmouth County, NJ, entered an Order authorizing the Administrator of an intestate estate to establish two Supplemental Benefits Trusts within an...more

G.L. v. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services

Decision and Order

In this case, the applicant’s Medicaid eligibility plan involved making a loan to a relative. The borrowing relative signed a promissory note agreeing to repay the note in monthly installments, including interest. The note...more

Bardfield v. O'Leary

Memorandum in Support of Opposition to Summary Judgment

This is the Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment in a case challenging the imposition of a "range test" where both statute and regulation state no such testing is required....more

In The Matter Of The Estate Of Leonard Manko

Order

In the Matter of the Estate of Leonard Manko - Order Authorizing Reformation of Testamentary Trust. This Order amended the existing testamentary trust in the will of Leonard Manko to establish a testamentary Supplemental...more

Lazaro v. Lazaro

Child Support Arrearages

Family Law Appeal for child support arrearages where the "children" were over 50 years old!...more