Tag: surrogate rules

Alberta Courts have been busy on the topic of costs in estate litigation in the past few months. Four recent decisions issued out of three judicial centres in Alberta provide a good reminder of just how unpredictable litigation is and the Court’s wide discretion in compensating parties for their litigation expenses. General principles If there […] Read More

If you dread doing your own taxes, then think twice about becoming an executor of an estate. One of the core duties of a personal representative is to deal with the deceased’s taxes. In Alberta, the duty is contained right in the Surrogate Rules, which state that: Determining the income tax or other tax liability […] Read More

I have been on quite the hiatus since last year!  I apologize – I have found that a wills and estates practice inevitably ramps up in the last month of the year on both the planning and litigation sides and last December was no exception. In the middle of all of the usual pre-holiday madness, […] Read More

A frequent area of estate litigation involves claims by adult interdependent partners against the estates of their deceased partners.  An adult interdependent partner is roughly the Alberta equivalent of a common law spouse, but may include other types of relationships. To qualify as an adult interdependent partner, two people must cohabit in a relationship of […] Read More

Acting as an executor or personal representative is a challenging job.  A personal representative is expected to follow the terms of a will, trust document or Court order and to do so prudently and competently.  Sometimes, the testator or the settlor of a trust adds to an already difficult job by creating an unclear will […] Read More