Real Estate
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September 23, 2025
Getting to ‘yes’: Settlement approvals for persons under disability
No settlement involving a person under disability, which includes the elderly incapable of managing their property and personal care, is binding on that incapable person unless the court approves of the settlement. That is because, while settling disputes before a hearing is encouraged by our judicial system, the legislature also recognizes that the incapable person would not have been able to properly consent to the settlement, and the court ought to review settlement for appropriateness to safeguard the incapable person’s interests.
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September 23, 2025
No benefit of hindsight: Ontario Court of Appeal clarifies framework for rectification
Rectification is an equitable remedy that corrects mistakes in written agreements. The recent case from the Ontario Court of Appeal, Pyxis Real Estate Equities Inc. v. Canada (Attorney General), 2025 ONCA 65, provides an important reminder of how rectification operates in the tax context and the importance of obtaining good tax advice.
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September 22, 2025
Ryan Walter rejoins DLA Piper as associate
Ryan Walter has returned to DLA Piper (Canada) LLP’s Edmonton office as an associate in the corporate group.
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September 22, 2025
Court orders building demolition over permit, contamination issues
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has ordered the demolition of a development due to the company going on with construction despite soil contamination and the lack of a building permit.
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September 19, 2025
SCC rules 5-4 in favour of Toronto homeowners’ adverse possession claim against municipal parkland
In a far-reaching adverse possession judgment that rejects a judge-made immunity for municipal parkland facing matured possessory claims in Ontario, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled 5-4 that two Toronto homeowners own a piece of adjoining municipal parkland that was fenced into their backyard decades ago by the home’s previous owner.
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September 19, 2025
ADVERSE POSSESSION - Crown lands
Appeal by appellants from a judgment of the Ontario Court of Appeal which upheld a judgment that adverse possession at common law was unavailable against municipal land.
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September 18, 2025
When charity funds mining: Flow-through shares and the Indigenous consent gap
What if your charitable donation was helping fund mining exploration on Indigenous lands — without the knowledge or consent of the nations impacted?
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September 17, 2025
Kate Costin named partner at Aird & Berlis
Aird & Berlis has a new partner: Kate Costin. According to a statement from the firm, Costin has joined its litigation and construction groups.
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September 17, 2025
An answer to Barrie’s homeless emergency: Community
The city of Barrie, Ont., is right to be talking about homelessness. It is indeed an emergency. That said, residents should be and are asking a lot of questions about how things got this bad. More on that to come.
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September 16, 2025
Cabinet says new criminal legislation coming in ‘matter of days’ but federal budget not till Nov. 4
With MPs back in the capital for the fall, the first two days in the House of Commons were busy ones for legislators. On Sept. 16, 2025, Justice Minister Sean Fraser disclosed some of the Liberal government’s immediate plans and timing for new criminal justice legislation, while Finance and National Revenue Minister François-Philippe Champagne informed the Commons today that he will deliver a somewhat tardy federal budget on Nov. 4, 2025 — not in October, as Liberal House Leader Steven MacKinnon stated when he laid out the minority government’s fall agenda at a press conference the previous day.