Wills, Trusts & Estates
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January 22, 2026
What I learned about artificial intelligence in the 1990s
My law firm had a thriving real estate practice in the 1980s. When the real estate market tanked from 1989 until about 1996, they were not happy times. We did not hire any real estate lawyers in those days.
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January 22, 2026
Revocation of joint will not revocation as it pertains to surviving testator: B.C. court
B.C.’s top court has ruled a judge was incorrect when he decided a man had died intestate because a will he wrote with his wife had been revoked before her death.
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January 22, 2026
TRUSTS - Administration - The beneficiary - The settlor - The trustee - Appointment
Appeal by Jim from a judge’s interpretation of clause 3.3 of a trust deed establishing an alter ego trust created by his father, Vines. Vines executed the trust deed in September 2021 and died in August 2022.
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January 21, 2026
Family agreements, part one: Governance of multigenerational family businesses
The lifecycle of an owner-managed business can vary significantly. In some instances, the owner-manager may choose to sell the business or wind it up when they retire. Conversely, the owner-manager may instead choose to transition the business to the next generation, maintaining it as a family enterprise. Where the business is to be transitioned to the next generation, effective succession planning is essential. As part of such succession planning, a family shareholders’ agreement (a “family agreement”) often serves as the “family rule book.”
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January 21, 2026
Billable hours, client trauma and vicarious stress in legal practice
Lawyers who live in a billable-hour world know that time is money, but for those working with traumatic subject matter, time equals exposure. The more hours spent inside a client’s worst days, the more likely it is that the work follows you home at night.
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January 20, 2026
B.C. postpones Heritage Conservation Act amendments to seek more feedback
The British Columbia government is postponing the introduction of proposed amendments to its Heritage Conservation Act, which were originally anticipated for spring 2026.
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January 19, 2026
What estate litigators can expect in 2026
2025 marked significant updates in estate litigation, introducing key reforms for practitioners. Changes to Estate Forms under Rules 74, 74.1 and 75 of the Rules of Civil Procedure, which took effect mid-August to simplify probate applications, will remain active into 2026. A notable Ontario Superior Court ruling in Mavalwala Estate v. Fast, 2025 ONSC 4100 confirmed that only physically executed wills are valid, and that electronic drafts are not valid. There have also been discussions regarding the changes to the Rules, which started in 2025 and will be implemented in 2026.
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January 19, 2026
B.C. Appeal Court upholds tax on foreign real estate buyers
B.C.’s top court has ruled the province’s so-called “foreign buyer’s tax” for certain real estate sales is payable on the whole transaction when any transferee is a foreign entity or taxable trustee.
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January 19, 2026
MAINTENANCE AND SUPPORT - Support of common law partner
Appeal by appellant from a chambers decision declaring the respondent to be Somers’ adult interdependent partner at the time of his death. The respondent applied for the declaration under the Adult Interdependent Relationships Act (AIRA), that she was the adult interdependent partner of the deceased and therefore entitled to apply for support and maintenance from his estate.
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January 16, 2026
SCC’s packed winter session features momentous appeal on Charter s. 33 override provision
The Supreme Court of Canada began hearings in its very busy winter session this week, which features a potentially watershed constitutional appeal and the surprise announcement that Justice Sheilah Martin, the court’s senior western judge, will retire next spring.