Wills, Trusts & Estates
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May 30, 2025
SCC rules Quebec licensing law does not apply to firms providing airport, maritime private security
In a judgment that turns on the application of the constitutional doctrine of interjurisdictional immunity, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled 9-0 that Quebec’s Private Security Act (PSA) does not apply to two companies that engage in airport and marine port security in the province because the Quebec law impairs activities at the core of exclusive federal jurisdiction over aeronautics, navigation and shipping.
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May 30, 2025
B.C. legal institute hopes to increase understanding of economic abuse in family law
The British Columbia Law Institute (BCLI) is looking to shed some light on an issue that it says has been seriously under-explored in legal literature and case law — economic abuse in family law, especially as it relates to family businesses.
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May 30, 2025
Another 404 error: Fake case law likely generated by AI
The explosive development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) platforms such as ChatGPT means that courts are increasingly faced with the task of determining what is real. AI can be an efficient tool for litigants to research and understand the applicable legal concepts and issues in their disputes. However, the current limitations of certain AI platforms involve a danger that fictitious authorities will be created to substantiate seemingly persuasive legal arguments.
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May 30, 2025
Can a will altered by someone other than the deceased be validated?
The will validation power is a potent tool, empowering the courts to save testamentary documents that do not comply with the statutory formalities of execution applicable to wills. However, the will validation power does not place any restrictions on who can create a non-compliant instrument for the deceased — validation is not limited to instruments created or altered by the deceased or their lawyer.
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May 29, 2025
Is it a rabbit or a duck? Why lawyers must be storytellers
Every lawyer has been there. We have laid out the facts. We have cited the law. We have prepared what we believe is a clear and persuasive argument. And yet the court saw something else — something that seems, at first glance, unrecognizable.
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May 27, 2025
Throne speech states Carney government’s ‘core mission is to build the strongest economy in the G7’
Delivering Canada’s speech from the throne for the first time, King Charles III outlined the Carney Liberal government’s plans to make Canada’s economy the most robust in the G7, including by driving the country’s emergence as an energy superpower and by removing internal trade barriers and other roadblocks to creating big national projects and large-scale affordable housing.
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May 26, 2025
Lawson Lundell adds two associates to estate and wealth advisory group
Lawson Lundell LLP has announced the addition of Alexander M. Lee and Max S.J. Shilleto as associates in its estate and wealth advisory group.
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May 27, 2025
Estate administration: Conflict of interest
In Virdi Estate (Re), 2025 BCSC 689, the Supreme Court of British Columbia recently considered a contentious dispute between siblings over who should administer their late father’s estate. This case serves as a useful illustration of how and when a court may utilize its discretion to pass over a named executor due to a conflict of interest, and clarifies the legal framework guiding such decisions.
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May 23, 2025
Clicking beyond death: Who gets your digital life after you’re gone?
In Jamaica, where I’m from, there’s often a mix of amusement and uneasy reverence when people discuss what to do with a person’s “belongings” when their “number has been called”: dead leff. Now, here’s the modern twist: what happens when your dead leff isn’t just a house or jewellery, but an entire digital life?
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May 22, 2025
Testamentary capacity: Principles and practice
In the majority of cases, determining whether a prospective client has testamentary capacity is not as simple as discerning between midnight and noon; rather, it is like determining the precise moment at which twilight turns to dark. This article considers some of the issues on point.