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Newsletter 47 is now available. Time to move on- Solo practice isn’t what it once was. In today’s complex legal world, it’s impossible to be all things to all people. With the growing administrative burden and the costs of keeping the door open, solo life is not nearly the fun it used to be. Over the last few years I have been driven to the conclusion that I needed to join a larger group. The decision to move was made much easier by virtue of the fact that two of my favorite firms had approached me independently with a view to making the move. When those two firms merged last autumn, the logic and emotional appeal became irresistible. And so, effective June 1, 2012 this practice will merge with Low Murchison Radnoff, a full-service team of twenty-five lawyers. The Law of Gifts- It is not uncommon, after the death of a parent, to find one of the children in possession of property that used to belong to Mom or Dad. Nor is it uncommon for the other kids to raise questions. They will say that there was no gift, but rather there was a trust, or a loan, and the property remains part of the estate. In such cases, the burden rests on the donee to prove that the transfer was a gift, and not something else. The two key tests for the donee to meet are, first, that the transfer was voluntary and gratuitous and, second, that there was an intention to pass both legal and beneficial title to the donee. Since the uncorroborated evidence of the donee will not stand, it is important to him or her to ensure there is clear, unimpeachable evidence supporting the intent and fact of gift. In most cases, the wisest way to deal with such matters is for the parent, while still alive, to document the transfer (for example, by Deed of Gift) and to let everyone else know what is happening.
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The Most Important Document You Will Ever Sign- Is it a million dollar contract? Purchase of a commercial complex? Your will? No, the most important document you’ll ever sign is your Power of Attorney for Personal Care, sometimes known as your “Living Will”. Why? Because this document is not about your stuff. It’s about your own future existence. Making bad choices will doom you to live with the consequences without ever being able to change them. Imagine this: you’re trapped inside your body, unable to communicate. You’ve been declared incapable of making personal decisions. Your life is completely in the control of outsiders, most of them strangers. With this background, imagine your day to day existence. Cold porridge for breakfast, tepid slop for lunch and “chef’s surprise” for dinner. Every day. Windows don’t open, no fresh air, always shut in, the lights burn until midnight. The night supervisor jokes about “the inmates”. No grass, no birds, no music, no books. Although you can’t communicate your horror, it is very real. In these circumstances, only one thing matters: Who did you appoint to be your Ambassador to the Outside World? Did you appoint a caring champion, a soul who knows your heart of hearts and will stand up for you, or just someone who is comfortable with having you efficiently warehoused until you die? Surveys- A survey is simply a map of a piece of property drawn by a professional surveyor according to strict rules so that the information is trustworthy and accurate. A survey that shows the location, shape and size of the buildings is called a building location survey. Surveys can be very important when certain features of the land or building will be critical for the use or development of the land or building. For instance, the only way to know for sure whether a building is set back sufficiently from the lot lines to comply with the zoning by-laws is to have it surveyed. In every case where land or building use, or the absence, presence or location of encroachments or easements is critical to the purchase, obtaining a survey is usually recommended. |
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