Skip to content
Browse All Posts
  • Estates Gone Wrong
  • Featured Topics
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Related Resources
  • Legacy Lexicon
  • Estates Gone Wrong
  • Featured Topics
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Related Resources
  • Legacy Lexicon
"Some businesses remain in the family. Others do not. Business owners might muse about succession within the family unit. However, musings do not always give rise to enforceable promises." 04 Mar
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Succession Lessons

Succession Planning for a Family Business Can Be Tricky

01 Mar
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Unique Assets & Interests

Planning for Collectible Assets: Start with a Written Inventory

A family business succession plan is more than paperwork; it is a systematic roadmap that protects the company’s legacy and the family’s wealth.  25 Feb
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Succession Lessons

Family Business Succession Planning in Canada: 2026

Typing “estate planning lawyers near me” into a search bar is a common first step, but finding the right one—someone who genuinely understands your family’s needs—is about more than just proximity. 31 Jan
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Related Resources

Ontario Guide: Finding The Right Estate Lawyer For You

While informal verbal agreements may seem convenient and cost-effective at the time they are made, they all-too-frequently lead to disputes down the road. 21 Jan
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Related Resources

Informal Verbal Agreements Frequently Lead to Estate Disputes

Family-owned enterprises represent nearly two thirds of all Canadian businesses... A poorly managed generational transition carries economic consequences that can ripple into employment, capital formation, municipal tax bases, and supply chains. 16 Jan
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Succession Lessons

Generational Transition Will Shape The Canadian Economy

This guide — brought to you by Memorial Merits — is written for military families who need straight answers, compassionate clarity, and the truth about what happens when service ends in sacrifice. 13 Dec
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Beneficiary Rights, Curated Content

Military Family Survivor Benefits: Legal Protections for Beneficiaries

This podcast episode —"Probate and Inherited Mineral Rights: Requirements and Alternatives"— explores the often-confusing process of transferring mineral rights when someone passes away. 04 Dec
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Related Resources

Unique Legacy Assets: Transferring & Inheriting Mineral Rights

Most retirees don’t tell adult children about their inheritance, research shows. Here's what advisors recommend sharing, and when... 25 Nov
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Communication Breakdowns, Curated Content

Reluctance to Divulge Estate Plans = Bigger Problems Later

If you’ve ever wondered whether your executor is prepared, whether your business could run without you, or whether your family is set up for clarity instead of conflict, this conversation will hit home. 24 Nov
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Related Resources

Canadian Wealth Secrets Podcast: “Why Your Will Is Not Enough”

There are many people who have an estate plan but haven’t taken the initiative to talk about it with their loved ones. These “conversation cues” can help your family have heartfelt and constructive estate-planning discussions. 11 Nov
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Curated Content, Related Resources

Conversation Cues For Constructive Estate Planning Discussions

05 Nov
  • by Estates Gone Wrong
  • Beneficiary Rights, Curated Content

Understanding the Rights of Beneficiaries in Estate Litigation

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • ...
  • 15

Search

Topics:

  • Beneficiary Rights (26)
  • Bizarre Bequests (30)
  • Celebrity Estates (56)
  • Charitable Misgivings (32)
  • Common Mistakes (52)
  • Communication Breakdowns (42)
  • Digital Distress (56)
  • Family Disputes (68)
  • Guardian Safeguards (38)
  • Infamous Feuds (34)
  • Law Reform (36)
  • Life Events (32)
  • Long-Term Care Crisis (36)
  • Property Pitfalls (54)
  • Squandered Fortunes (24)
  • Succession Lessons (42)
  • Tax-Smart Strategies (36)
  • Unique Assets & Interests (28)

Recent:

Long-Term Care (LTC) is expensive, unpredictable and often prolonged. The projected “great wealth transfer” may therefore become far more concentrated among families who are wealthy enough to absorb years of care costs without exhausting their assets.

US Long-Term Care Costs ‘Eating into’ Family Wealth

Have Canadian boomers saved enough for retirement? It doesn't seem like it... And the numbers suggest this isn’t just a handful of unlucky families. It’s a structural problem with how an entire generation approached retirement.

Why Canadian Kids Are Bailing Out Boomer Parents

A handshake promise to leave the family farm can legally override a written will in New South Wales. The legal mechanism is equitable estoppel, and courts have enforced it in farm succession disputes where the evidence is strong enough.

NSW Inheritance Law: Can a Verbal Promise Override a Will?

Washington Post analysis finds that the "great wealth transfer" narrative is largely a story about the very top of the income distribution. For many in the middle, retirement savings are being consumed by care costs, not passed on.

Cost of Eldercare Obliterating Expected Inheritance

Story Submission

We know, this can be a very sensitive topic. If you have a personal story or a cautionary tale —a link to a specific article, blog post, or recommended resource that you found particularly helpful in your own estate planning and administration journey— anonymous submissions are welcomed and encouraged.

Share Your Story

Search:

Follow:

Explore:

Administration Canada Capacity Court Battles Court Rulings Debt Definitions Designations Eldercare End-of-Life Planning Estate Tax Executor Fiduciary Duty Glossary Guardianship Guide High Net Worth Industry Expert International Jurisdictions Law Reform Lawsuits Litigation Philanthropy Powers of Attorney Probate Professional Advisor Real Estate Resources Roles Siblings Statistics Strategies Succession Survivorship Tax Technology Terminology Testator Intent Transparency Trustee Trusts United States Vulnerable Adults Watchable
©estatesgonewrong.com