by Howard Nightingale | Oct 12, 2018 | Family Law, Federal Court Legislation, Ontario Legislation |
In Ontario, what many people casually refer to as a “prenup’ is legally termed a marriage contract. Its purpose is to allow either or both of the partners, prior to the marriage, to set aside and protect specific wealth assets that would otherwise be subject to the...
by Howard Nightingale | Aug 9, 2018 | Wills & Estates |
Once known as probate fees, the official name is now the Estate Administration Tax Public interest in wills and estates seems to be on the increase. Maybe that’s because we’re still grappling with Ontario’s new legislation which came into effect January 1, 2015 and...
by Howard Nightingale | Jul 3, 2018 | Family Law, Federal Court Legislation |
Two decades old now, the Canadian Divorce Act is out of date according to the federal government; Bill C-78 is their attempt to modernize it. The bill is promoted as being “child centric:” specifically, the law uses the phrase, Best interests of the child, and directs...
by Howard Nightingale | Apr 25, 2018 | Family Law, Legal Coaching |
What is legal coaching? The concept of legal coaching is best understood by redefining – at least to an extent – the relationship between lawyer and client. The lawyer does not represent you; you represent yourself. The lawyer now becomes a coach or tutor whose...
by Howard Nightingale | Apr 5, 2018 | Family Law |
Family Court has developed new terminology reflecting its attempt to develop alternative arrangements for the children of divorced and separated parents. These include: primary and secondary parents; shared and split custody, and parallel parenting. Exactly what are...
by Howard Nightingale | Feb 13, 2018 | Ontario Legislation, Real Estate Law |
Last month’s blog reviewed the Ontario Fair Workplace legislation and the prediction that the Act’s centerpiece, the $15/hr minimum wage increase, would wreak havoc. Without taking sides, it is safe to say that the legislation has done exactly that, and continues to...
by Howard Nightingale | Jan 8, 2018 | Corporate/Commercial, Ontario Legislation |
The Business of America Ontario is Business Initially attributed to American president Calvin Coolidge in 1925, this quotation might well apply (in something of a contentious way, perhaps) to Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynn’s government. This past year, it legislated...
by Howard Nightingale | Dec 20, 2017 | Wills & Estates |
The Deed of Gift is, perhaps, a less familiar legal instrument that works nicely with will, estate and probate planning to minimize your exposure to unnecessary probate fees. (Please note that what was formerly called probate is now referred to as Certificate of...
by Howard Nightingale | Oct 31, 2017 | Family Law |
When the Law isn’t Necessarily the Law The essential question is this: can a marriage contract stipulate terms contrary to the Family Law Act? In a word, yes it can. If you receive a marriage contract from your significant other prior to getting married, and it...
by Howard Nightingale | Aug 18, 2017 | Real Estate Law |
Help for Home Buyers The key part of the Home Inspection Act 2017 is the regulation of home inspectors. Given that just about everything else in Ontario society is regulated by the government, you might not have realized that this wasn’t true for home inspections....
