It’s an exciting time of year: high school graduation is just around the corner. Your teenager is about to spread their wings and (hopefully) become an independent adult, whether heading off to college or university or going into the workforce. One extra thing that...
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Powers of Attorney
The importance of a properly drafted power of attorney
Even though the vast majority of Canadians do not actually have a will, most at least recognize the importance of them. The same is not true for powers of attorney, and in particular, the Power of Attorney for Personal Care. In Ontario, as in many other places, it can...
Why a Power of Attorney is even more important than a will
I have many clients come to me to have wills drafted, and decide to get only wills and not powers of attorney. While I go ahead with whatever their wish is, ultimately, my view is that powers of attorney are even more important than wills and if you’re only going to...
Dying well
Last week, I wrote about the incredible importance of a properly-drafted property power of attorney with the right person chosen to act. This week, I wanted to focus on care. There has been a lot of discussion lately in Canada about end-of-life care; just a few weeks...
Choose your own attorney
I’ve written before about the importance of choosing the right attorney for both property and care, and taking the time to write those choices down. Here is a cautionary tale about what can happen if you pick the wrong one. Jack Johnson is a star player with the...
Lessons in end of life care from Joan Rivers
As most people will know, Joan Rivers passed away in early September. She was a pioneer in the comedy world, and a larger-than-life figure. She also took death in stride, regularly making jokes about it in her comedy acts and online. It turns out that she did more...
Stolen body parts
I recently came across this article about a woman in Philadelphia whose son’s body was not properly returned to her. Mary Anderson’s son died of complications from a lung infection, so she authorized an autopsy to determine exactly what he died of. When his body was...
When does life support stop supporting life?
There has been a lot of discussion in the news in recent months over what counts as “life,” between the right-to-die cases moving toward the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as the Rasouli cases and the right to keep a patient on life support when the family’s wishes...
No assets? At least consider a power of attorney
A lot of people tell me that they have no major assets, and no dependants, so they don't need to have a will drafted. While I'm not entirely sure I agree with that, even if you don't need a will, it doesn't mean you don't need to do estate planning. If you were...
A code of conduct for will drafters
I spent four wonderful years at Queen's University, where I majored in women's studies and minored in English literature. After a year off teaching English in South Korea, I then went to law school at the University of Ottawa where I completed my law degree, articled...