Toronto Estate Law Blog : Toronto Estate Lawyer : Hull & Hull Law Firm : Trust Mediation and Succession Planning : Serving Ontario, Ottawa, Mississauga, Hamilton

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In a recent article in the Toronto Star, estate litigation was explored from another angle; fighting over the estate before there really is one to fight over.

The author of the article discusses a story regarding an individual who was waiting for his parents to pass away, so that he could reap the financial reward of their hard work. On first glance this may seem shocking, but unfortunately is achingly familiar. Although we see family fights every day, and indeed engage in litigation over a deceased loved one’s life savings, a specialized fight appears to be more and more prevalent.

The article suggests that the increase in disputes over a parent’s estate while they are alive can be attributed to demographics; the result of a generation that is living longer, had a habit of saving, and find themselves in need of care.

Claims against an estate are often brought under the guise of needing funds during the course of caring for an ailing or ill parent. In a recent decision, Justice David Brown commented on this very issue, indicating that the courts are losing their patience with money hungry children.

I am hopefully years away from dealing with ailing family members and the reality of dealing with their financial affairs. Yet in light of the recent spotlight on this issue, I hope that if you find yourself in this position, you make decisions after careful consideration of all possible outcomes.

Thanks for reading,

Nadia

Nadia M. Harasymowycz - Click here for more information on Nadia Harasymowycz.
 

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I quickly learned that what most of us just know as a day to consume green drinks or wear a green shirt, actually began as a celebration of St. Patrick’s life. Celebrating St. Patrick takes place on March 17 in honour of the date of his death.

Many cities around the world celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, Chicago even goes so far as to dye the Chicago River green. Not to be outdone, many Canadian cities manage to celebrate in their own unique ways. Montreal has a yearly parade, the largest of its kind in Canada, Calgary has been known to change the lights on the Calgary Tower to green, and on several occasions Toronto sports teams have traded in their traditional uniforms for a green version.

Celebrating of the death of St. Patrick is a strong tradition in Toronto and around the world. So, whatever your means of celebrating, I hope you enjoyed yesterday and good luck on the early planning for next year.

Until Next Time,

Nadia
 

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I came across an article when thinking about blog topics for this week.   It appears that a recent Australian study from the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in the state of Victoria concluded that watching television can increase risk of death.

The study, published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, followed the lifestyle habits of 8,800 adults who were age 25 or older at the commencement of the study. It was found that each hour spent in front of the TV daily increased the risk of dying earlier from cardiovascular disease, as well as creating a 9% higher risk of cancer related death.

Although the study focused on Television watching, it seems from the publication that the conclusions may be even more related to a sedentary lifestyle. While this may seem like a logical conclusion, this result is to be distinguished from any previous knowledge of the positive effects of a healthy active lifestyle. It appears that we now have evidence which assures us that spending time sitting, particularly in front of the television may cause additional harm to our bodies, even if we generally live an active lifestyle.

I can’t personally advocate on behalf of any of the articles to which I’ve referenced, but what I do know, is if there is any truth to the possibility that television viewing can shorten a life, it seems to be a pretty simple solution to get outside, enjoy the beautiful weekend forecast and go for a walk.

Have a nice weekend, thanks for reading,

Nadia

Nadia M. Harasymowycz - Click here for more information on Nadia Harasymowycz.

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Jimi Hendrix's family and Sony Commercial Music Group have collaborated and the result is a new album featuring Hendrix music.  Mark this day in your calendar as this album should hit the stores on March 9, 2010.

The Hendrix legacy is closely protected by Experience Hendrix LLC, a family run company, currently being run by Janie Hendrix, Jimi's sister.  She has indicated that the Estate 'had enough material for "a decade's worth" of new releases, both music and video.'  

The currently slated release will be titled "Valleys of Neptune", and will include never before heard recordings.  The music will mostly be taken from a four month studio session in 1969, a year before Hendrix died, at the young age of 27.

With his estate in possession of so much fresh artistic material, it looks like we may be able to look forward to many more Hendrix albums.  Shockingly, Hendrix may release more in death than in life.

Until Tomorrow,

Nadia

Nadia M. Harasymowycz - Click here for more information on Nadia Harasymowycz.
 

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Franz Kafka left a will instructing his friend, Max Brod, to burn his manuscripts and not to publish them.  However, Brod spent much of his life editing Kafka's work for publication, making Kafka's writings into very influential pieces of fiction.  However, Brod's life work, and his alleged actions are currently under scrutiny in Israeli courts.

It appears that certain Kafka manuscripts have fallen into the hands of two sisters who received them from their mother.   Their mother, Esther Hoffe, received them from Max Brod, some 20 - 30 years after Kafka's death.   The sisters allegedly sold some manuscripts for millions of dollars and shared the profits with their mother.   Others purportedly remain in a safety deposit box.

This matter is currently before Israeli courts and it appears that there is some debate about the manner in which the manuscripts were received.  It further appears that true ownership of the documents is being contested, and the courts have given the parties involved, including the State of Israel and the National Library, an opportunity to settle this matter out of court.  The settlement deadline expired last week.  If the parties have not yet reached a settlement, the courts have indicated that they will order the safety deposit box where the manuscripts are being held to be opened, potentially damaging the manuscripts and reducing their value.

The outcome of this litigation will surely be interesting from an Estate perspective, but also may provide us with several new literary works from a truly famous author.   Only time will tell if the world will be gifted with such new works. 

Until Tomorrow,

Nadia

Nadia M. Harasymowycz - Click here for more information on Nadia Harasymowycz.