Feb 20, 2025
On February 6, 2025, Cara Zacks was a panelist at the Ontario Legal Conference hosted by the Ontario Bar Association. Cara Spoke on a panel with family law lawyer Kelly Jordan on the subject of Marital Contracts After Death. The Panel was moderated by family law lawyer Ibtisam Jemal.
Cara presented on issues related to the enforceability of a marriage contract after death. In particular, she discussed setting aside provisions in a marriage contract through which a spouse releases the right to claim dependent support under the Succession Law Reform Act or to elect equalization after the death of a spouse.
Nothing contained in this post constitutes legal advice or establishes a solicitor-client relationship. If you have any questions regarding your legal rights or legal obligations, you should consult a lawyer.
Nov 21, 2023
On October 23rd, 2023, Casey & Moss Partners Laura Cardiff and Cara Zacks were speakers on a panel hosted by the Ontario Bar Association on the subject of meeting the minimal evidentiary threshold in will challenges.
When someone challenges the validity of a will, before the will challenge can proceed before the court, the challenger must prove to the court that there is at least a minimal amount of evidence to support the claims being raised. If the will challenger cannot point to any evidence that, if corroborated, would prove that the deceased executed their will while lacking capacity, under duress, or under undue influence, then the will challenge won’t be allowed to move forward.
The purpose of requiring will challengers to meet this minimal evidentiary threshold is to protect an estate from having to spend time and estate money defending will challenges that don’t have any merit at all.
Laura and Cara spoke to the audience, consisting primarily of other estate litigators, about recent court decisions on the topic. They also provided a series of practical tips for litigators on what to include, and what to leave out of affidavits to make sure clients meet the threshold.
