In this issue - #164 October 30, 2012

On October 22nd, Pushor Mitchell closed for the afternoon to participate in the United Way Days of Caring Program.  Over 100 staff and lawyers volunteered over 400 hours for projects that were as diverse as the skill level of the volunteers themselves.

Why did you become a lawyer?

I was having a lot of fun doing my first degree, studying English, History, Economics, Political Science, Fine Arts, Classical Studies, Anthropology, all fascinating courses, but none of which was going to enable me to earn a living.  The idea of law seemed to fit with my interests: I would be able to continue learning for the rest of my life, I would be able to help people by sharing my knowledge, and best of all, people would pay me to tell them what to do!

The Supreme Court of Canada, in a just-released decision (R. v. Cole), has indicated that an employee has a reasonable expectation of privacy with respect to personal information stored on employer's computer where personal use is permitted or reasonably expected.

British Columbia is a unique jurisdiction for estate planning because of:

• probate fees of 1.4% of the gross value of the assets that pass through Estate ($14,000 per million); and
• the Wills Variation Act (“WVA”) which allows a spouse or child to apply to vary the Will if they don’t believe “adequate provision” has been made for them in the Will.

Anyone who is contemplating selling their business should start the planning process early in order to maximize the value that a third party will pay. Part of that planning should include readying their business for the purchaser’s “due diligence” review.

Thousands of motorists may be driving cars and trucks installed with dangerous counterfeit air bags.

There may be many disputes over the course of a residential construction project. These disputes are often resolved through negotiation and without resorting to litigation. However, if such disputes escalate and litigation is commenced, the parties to the dispute may quickly multiply as each party seeks to spread the blame for a problem among other participants in the project’s construction.

In most cases employees are not overly concerned about the precise legal identity of their employer.  It does become an important issue when the employment relationship breaks down and the employee is seeking a remedy.

Everyone should have a Will. A Will becomes even more important where you have assets (i.e. own a home, have businesses etc.), have a spouse and/or children. By not having a Will, you effectively lose control over who gets your estate, how much and when.

Land on reserve cannot be sold. So when a developer builds a residential project on reserve land, the developer leases the land on which the project will be built, and then sells long term subleases for each home.

Pushor Mitchell was recently chosen as one of the 2012 FortisBC PowerSense Conservation Excellence Award recipients.

From Our Business Law Group – Represented a developer in the completion and registration of an air space subdivision plan that resulted in the first air space parcel for a residential /commercial project in Kelowna.

Find out more about our Business Law Group: http://www.pushormitchell.com/service/business-law

A Florida man who lost his left hand in an alligator attack has been charged with illegally feeding the gator. Talk about adding insult to injury.