Beneficiary Designations at Risk
A recent Ontario court decision could upend estate planning. This article will briefly review the common law principles governing the gratuitous transfers of property, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) decision in Pecore v. Pecore, 2 and how this decision has been applied in Calmusky and other recent court decisions to override transfers pursuant to beneficiary designations. This article will also discuss steps that can be taken to ensure that a beneficiary designation in favour of adult children (and other adult beneficiaries) will be respected by the Courts.