In 1998, Ms. Tollis was declared incapable of managing her property. In the same year, the Public Guardian and Trustee (the “PGT”) became her statutory guardian of property. Ms. Tollis held an interest in a house along with her brother, Mr. Tollis. The interest in the house was Ms. Tollis’ primary financial asset. Shortly before […]
It is not surprising that Mickey Rooney’s estate may become embroiled in litigation. Mr. Rooney was married nine times; he was survived by a number of children and stepchildren, and was estranged from his current wife at the time of his death. Such full lives often lead to complicated estates. More troubling was that shortly
In a recent Ontario case, divorced parents each sought sole guardianship of their mentally incapable adult daughter. The parents, who divorced in the 1980s, were unable to work together as joint guardians of their 42 years old mentally incapable daughter (“Isabella”). While both parents, who are now in their 70s, agreed that it would be ideal
In what circumstances will a court order a plaintiff to undergo a mental examination to determine whether she is a party under a legal disability who has to be represented by a litigation guardian? This was one of the issues for the court to determine in the recent Ontario case of 626381 Ontario Limited et al.
The recent decision in Lehtonen v. Neill serves as a useful reminder of the sometimes overlooked subsection 22(3) of the Substitute Decisions Act. This provision prohibits the court from appointing a guardian where the court is satisfied that decision making for the incapable person can be met by a less intrusive means. It says: The Court shall not
