When you leave your pet for a weekend, you have a plan. You know who'll feed it and how much it will cost. So, what happens when you step away from your business for the weekend? More importantly, what will happen when you leave your business for much longer - as in, permanently? Anyone who owns a small or medium-sized business, regardless of age or stake in the company, should give some serious thought to succession planning. Why? Because you never know when you’re going to

When planning for your pets, there are a few things you’ll want to consider. Depending on how many pets you have, you will need to decide if

Clients often ask what documents they should have in place to ensure they have properly prepared for a health care emergency, illness, or passing. In short, if you own property, are getting older or if you have dependants, there are three documents you should prepare to help your loved ones manage your affairs. Last Will: Your Last Will describes how to distribute your estate after you die. Personal Directive: Your Health Care Directive (also called Living Will or Health Car

An Estate Plan is the process of planning in advance what you would like done with your property, your finances, and your health should you become incapacitated or in the event of your death. In Alberta, there are three documents that commonly make up an Estate Plan. The document you are probably the most familiar with is a Will. But depending on your needs and desires, you may also want to include a Power of Attorney and a Personal Directive. In this article, we will briefly

Your personal directive gives you the ability to name a person you trust to have legal authority to make decisions on your behalf, if you be

Without a will, a person is said to die intestate. This does not mean all their property is forfeited to the government. It means that provincial intestate rules in the province in which the deceased lived will dictate how assets will be distributed. In the absence of a will, the settlement of an estate can be delayed and unnecessary expenses incurred. If there are minor children, and no surviving spouse, the children will be placed in the care of a court-appointed guardian.

Prior to creating your Will, Power of Attorney and Personal Directive you will need to begin gathering information and making important decisions. The information below will guide you through the planing process. GENERAL INFORMATION In addition to your personal information, your lawyer will need to be made aware of the following: Any plans to move in the foreseeable future. If you reside part of the year outside of Canada. If married, do you have a marriage contract, or pren

Did you know that in an effort to encouraged the public to write a will, or bring their existing will up to date, the government in British Columbia has declared April 10-16 'Make a Will Week'? The need to properly plan is not unique to British Columbians. Albertans also need to prepare for their future. It has been reported that less than half of all Canadians have a signed, legally valid and up-to-date will. This number jumps to 80% for those between the age of 18 and 34

Once you have prepared a Personal Directive it is important to register your personal directive with the Government of Alberta. When you register your personal directive with the Government of Alberta, approved health care professionals can contact the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee to find out: If you have a personal directive How to contact your agent(s) if need be If you are admitted to hospital and you’ve lost the ability to make decisions because you are ill o

A great article in the Globe and Mail highlighting tax advantages associated with proper planning. Contact us to learn how we can assist you with preparing or updating your Will, Personal Directive & Power of Attorney. Don't Let the Tax Man be Your Benficiary #wills #estateplannig #personaldirective #LivingWill #PowerofAttorney #taxes #fiance