Lawyers will often start conversations and meetings with a request that the conversation is “off the record”. It is important to remember that lawyers will almost always report back to their clients about the conversation and what was said. These conversations are not completely confi...

In this case Mr McCowen engaged a Solicitor to draft his Will. He told the Solicitor that he wished to benefit his third wife, give $1,000 to each of his three children from his second marriage, and that he wanted his residuary estate to be shared by the three children from his first marriage. Th...

Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution. Alternative dispute resolution is a method of resolving disputes outside of the court system. They are often used as a more time efficient, less expensive and more amicable way for resolving a dispute.  There are different types of alter...

Donatio Mortis Causa (DMC), commonly known as a "deathbed gift," is a gift made by a person in contemplation of their imminent death. It shares some characteristics with a legacy in a Will because it is conditional on the death of the gift-giver (also known as the donor) and can be revo...

When establishing a Special Disability Trust, it is important that all the requirements are met. As we have seen in the blog What is a Special Disability Trust, the trust can only be established for one beneficiary (not including residuary beneficiaries) and must cease when the beneficiary d...