British Columbia Court of Appeal relies on BCLI report on Wills, Estates and Succession in Interpreting BC’s Wills, Estates and Succession Act.

In a recent decision involving the interpretation of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, SBC 2009, c 13, [WESA], the British Columbia Court of Appeal placed significant reliance on BCLI’s report Wills, Estates an Succession: A Modern Legal Framework on the basis of which the Act was drafted. The case, Robledano v Queano, 2019 BCCA 150 concerned the division of an estate of Ms. Jacinto, who was deemed to have died intestate. Ms. Robledano alleged that she Read more…

New Accessing Law and Justice Project Aims to Redefine the Practice and Delivery of Legal Services in Quebec

The Quebec Accessing Law and Justice Project (ADAJ) has launched a new project, known as Hub23, to develop innovative practice and billing models for legal services in the province. Led by ADAJ founder, Professor Pierre Noreau (l’Université de Montréal), and Julie Paquin, associate professor (University of Ottawa’s civil law section), the Hub23 project aims to “draw on the expertise of practitioners involved in the day-to-day practice of law and university researchers from several disciplines (sociologists Read more…

OBSI and the Legal System

From time to time seniors have disputes with their financial service providers. When the problem cannot be fixed through the firm’s complaint process, one alternative to taking legal action may be to take the concern to OBSI (The Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments). This summary explains what OBSI does and how it differs from a legal system approach. What is OBSI? The Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) is a not-for-profit organization that investigates Read more…

A closer look at the Report on Insurance Issues for Stratas: Should the Strata Property Act require strata-lot owners to have insurance that covers payment of a deductible under a strata-corporation policy?

This post is part of a series highlighting key recommendations in the Report on Insurance Issues for Stratas. For other entries in the series, click here. Brief description of the issue There are real concerns that rising insurance deductibles could harm strata-lot owners. This potential for harm might even be exacerbated by the previous recommendation. One response to this harm might be to encourage what many strata-lot owners have already done: take out their own Read more…

Meet our new Legal Research Assistant

My name is Sara Pon.  I completed my master’s degree in law at York University in 2018, and I obtained my JD from the University of Victoria.  I am working at the British Columbia Law Institute (BCLI) and Canadian Center for Elder Law (CCEL) because of my passion for research involving older adults and law reform.  This interest started from seeing my mother’s work as a nurse in long-term care.  During my undergraduate degree, I Read more…