In this issue - #150 August 31, 2011

Pushor Mitchell LLP would like to thank the hundreds and hundreds of volunteers for their time and commitment. We could not do it without you.

We would also like to congratulate all eighteen hundred participants. On Saturday, over 600 children and triathlon novices participated and on Sunday for the first time ever there were the maximum number of 1200 participants.

Race results can be found here: http://www.appletriathlon.com/results-2011.php

We look forward to seeing you back on August 18th and 19th, 2012 for the 30th Annual Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon.

Pushor Mitchell is proud to be a sponsor of the Kelowna Terry Fox Run - one of over 900 Terry Fox run sites across Canada. The Terry Fox Foundation is one of the most fiscally responsible charities in Canada with 85 cents of every dollar raised going directly to cancer research. Every dollar really can make a difference. This money funds leading edge research project for all types of cancer.

Everyone should have an estate plan in place to ensure a smooth transition of their assets and care for their loved ones. We understand this process can be emotional and is unique for each individual and we know what needs to be done to ensure that your wishes are upheld and your loved ones are protected.

A family trust is an excellent tool to minimize taxes through income splitting.  It is particularly useful for parents who want to provide financial support for their children’s post-secondary education expenses.

If you have an existing Will, that’s a great start. However, as your life changes, so do your estate planning needs. Estate planning should be viewed as a process, not as a one off event. As you progress through the journey of life, things happen that require you to address your Will. Furthermore, with upcoming changes in the law relating to Wills and Estates, now is a great time to review your estate plan.

Trusts can be an important part of your estate plan.  There are many types of trusts, and your estate planning lawyer can help you determine if a trust will be beneficial for you.  To help you understand a bit about the various trust used in estate planning, the following is a basic primer on types of trusts.

This is an interesting but complex area of the law. The Indian Act sets out a land holding scheme that is meant to preserve the Indian band’s ancestral land base in a communal sense. In line with the purpose of the Indian Act to protect the ancestral land base of Indian bands, only band members can acquire Certificates of Possession in reserve land. Certificates of Possession denote a transfer in rights to land on a reserve from the band as a “commune” to the individual band member. A Certificate of Possession can be leased or transferred, however the Certificate cannot be transferred to non-band members.

Your Will is an essential part of any Estate plan, but it only comes into effect on death. As such,  your Will is not able to address issues that may occur while you are alive, such as appointing representatives to act on your behalf in the event of mental or physical incapacity. Powers of Attorney (POAs), Representation Agreements and Living Wills are all important “Life Planning” tools that are effective while you are alive, and which can address these types of issues (amongst others).

As a personal injury lawyer, it may come as no surprise that my friends and family joke about whether they need to sign a waiver form before entering my home.  For those of you who are thinking: “does she actually make them sign a waiver?” the answer of course is “no”, although for some family members (who shall remain nameless) it might not be a bad idea!  All kidding aside, most of us have to sign waiver forms (also known as release forms or consent forms) from time to time.

A number of significant changes to the Power of Attorney Act come into effect on September 1, 2011. These amendments will entrench the Enduring Power of Attorney as the document of choice for most people who wish to plan for the management of their financial affairs in the event of incapacity. Enduring Powers of Attorney of the old Act are grandfathered and deemed to be Enduring Powers of Attorney under the revised Power of Attorney Act.

Medical malpractice cases are very complex.

This series of articles by BC personal injury and medical malpractice lawyer Paul Mitchell, Q.C., will explain the Top 7 things you need to know about  medical malpractice cases, including when a medical malpractice case should be commenced, the legal and medical issues involved, and why they are so hard to win.

Paul Mitchell Q.C has successfully concluded BC medical malpractice cases for amounts up to 3.5 million in individual cases.

Find out what is involved in these difficult cases

The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada (OSB) added a new section to its website to help educate the public and stakeholders on bankruptcy compliance. The section outlines the duties of an individual declaring bankruptcy, examines the consequences of abuse and fraudulent activity, addresses what to do if fraud is detected and presents examples of actual penal and criminal cases.