Civil Litigation

Wills and Estates

When a loved one is lost, it is often an emotional and hard experience. This time can be complicated further if there is a dispute over the will or estate of a loved one. At NuriLaw, we can help represent and protect your interests through this difficult time.

Challenging a Will

You can challenge the validity of a will if you do not believe that what was left in the will was the testator’s final wishes. There are numerous grounds that you can use to challenge a will, including:

the will has been forged or fraudulent activity was involved in drafting the will;
the testator did not have the capacity to make or update the will;
the testator had a lack of knowledge of what was actually written in the will;
the testator was subject to undue influence in making or updating the will.

Equalization Claims Related to Estates

Married spouses also have certain rights under estates laws. If a spouse was not left what they would have had an equalization claim under the Family Law Act, they can elect to receive what they would have received with an equalization payment, or they can choose to take what they were left in their spouse’s will. A claim for equalization will take priority over any gifts that the deceased left in their will. This right does not apply to common-law spouses.

Dependants are also able to apply to the court if the testator has not left adequate support to the dependant in their will upon their death. A dependant is a spouse, parent, child or sibling of the deceased to whom the deceased had a legal obligation to provide support to immediately before their death.

Disputing Powers of Attorney

A Power of Attorney can assist you in managing your finances and personal care if you do not have the capacity to do so yourself. Powers of Attorney for property and personal care are governed under the Substitute Decisions Act, 1992.

A Power of Attorney is legally obligated to act in the best interest of the grantor and cannot mismanage the grantor’s property. It is a serious offence, punishable under the Criminal Code, for a Power of Attorney to misappropriate the grantor’s property.

If you think your Power of Attorney, or a loved one’s Power of Attorney, is taking advantage of their position and not acting in your, or the grantor’s best interest, you can apply to the court to get them removed as Power of Attorney.