McMichael Davidson
223 Aylmer Street North, Unit A West K9J 3K3 Peterborough, ON, Canada

We wish everyone a Happy & Safe Holidays Season surrounded by family and friends. *Please note the office will be closed From December 23rd, 2017 until January 2nd, 2018 We look forward to continuing to serve you in 2018 following our merger with Sullivan Law Ptbo

The office will be closed December 23rd, 2016 - January 2nd, 2017. Please feel free to email or leave a voicemail as both will be check periodically.

What would happen if you die without a Will in Ontario? When a person dies without a Will in Ontario, someone has to apply to the court to be appointed as the estate trustee to administer the deceased estate. The job of an estate trustee can be quite taxing, and involves a substantial degree of trust, since the person who is appointed will have access and control of all of the assets in the estate. To protect the estate and the beneficiaries, the Superior Court of Justice oft...en requires the person who is asking to be appointed as estate trustee to post an estate administration bond. The bond is in place to protect the estate while the estate trustee pays the debts of the deceased and distributes the estate to the beneficiaries. The Court may, on a motion from the estate trustee, order that a bond is not required if it is satisfied that the estate and the beneficiaries are sufficiently protected. The motion must provide the Court with the following: - Evidence of who the beneficiaries of the estate are - The value of the beneficiaries’ interest in the estate - Consents from all beneficiaries to the appointment and to the dispensation of the bond, or an explanation as to how the interests of those beneficiaries are protected - Evidence as to whether all the debts of the deceased have been paid - The last occupation of the deceased. If any of the beneficiaries do not consent to the appointment, or do not consent to the dispensation of the administration bond, then the estate must obtain the administration bond from an insurance company. The premiums payable for the bond will depend on the value of the estate, and it is a cost that must be incurred annually until the estate has been administered.

Wills & Estates: Bequests to Children In Ontario, a child is a person who is under the age of eighteen years. If a Will states that a child will receive a cash bequest on the death of a testator, the Children’s Law Reform Act of Ontario provides that if the bequest is $10,000 or less, the estate trustees may pay the bequest to the parent or guardian of the child. However, if the bequest is over $10,000, the balance of the bequest over $10,000 must be paid into the Ontario Su...perior Court by the estate trustees. The Ontario Court will then hold the bequest until the child reaches eighteen years of age, when the bequest and the income earned on same will be paid to the, now adult, child. While there is a procedure whereby the child’s parent or guardian can access the amount paid into Court before the child reaches eighteen years of age, the process is not a simple task. A better alternative would be to have the testator’s Will state that the bequest to the child shall be held by the estate trustees in trust and shall be used for the benefit of the child until the child reaches eighteen years, or some later age specified by the testator. This will allow the estate trustees to provide the maximum benefit for the child while the child is growing up, rather than simply giving a lump sum to the child when he or she reaches eighteen years of age. Make sure to review your Will and ask those who plan to leave a bequest to your children to ensure that the bequest is held in trust by the testator’s estate trustees. This will avoid the risk that the bequest be sidetracked into the Superior Court.

Happy Halloween Everyone! Be Safe tonight and watch out for the kids wrapped up in the excitement!

Warmest wishes to you this holiday season. ~ Scott, Vickie & Jenn

Buying your first Home can be scary, here's our guide to make the move easier! Home Purchase ~ Guide & Checklist

With the start of a new year a new rule has come into effect for Estate Administration. Effective January 1, 2015, the Estate Administration Tax Act has come into effect, which was passed over three years ago. An estate representative has to file with the Ministry of Finance an Estate Administration Return no later than 90 days after a Certificate for the Appointment of an Estate Trustee is issued. The new requirement does not apply to an estate trustee who applied for a cert...ificate prior to January 1, 2015. New reassessment requirements in the Act also mean the estate trustees have to retain estate administration records for a number of years. For those facing estate administration in 2015 we'd welcome the opportunity to sit down and discuss these new rules with you.

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