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Wills, Estates and Trusts Group Head Craig Ross specializes in complex and high conflict wills and estates, representing business owners, professionals, high-net-worth individuals, blended families, families with children with disabilities, and individuals and families dealing with discord.
In complex estate planning cases, he works closely with clients and other professional advisors to develop customized estate plans that give maximal effect to his clients’ intentions. These could be identifying and dealing with responsibilities to spouses, common-law spouses, and other dependants; developing creative solutions to give effect to special intentions regarding certain beneficiaries or estate property; and making use of trusts and other tools to provide estate protection, creditor protection, and income tax and probate planning as circumstances require.
Craig is regularly called on to advise business owners on appropriate business structures and strategies to achieve their goals related to the succession of businesses and the death of business owners. He has significant expertise in the use of family trusts for business succession and other purposes.
Furthermore, Craig has significant experience assisting families with children who have disabilities. This includes educating parents on the planning required to protect ODSP benefits for their children and utilizing the legal tools to secure this protection, advocating on behalf of families when beneficiaries’ ODSP benefits are at risk, and representing families where court-ordered guardianship is required to care for their loved ones. He is a director of Community Living Mississauga and sits on their Rights Review Committee.
In addition, Craig has a robust estate administration and litigation practice providing efficient, cost effective and expert advice to estate trustees in everyday probate and estate administration work.
Uniquely qualified to deal with more complex issues, he advises clients on succession of businesses, establishing and administering testamentary trusts, extra provincial and foreign jurisdictions, claims by and against estates and conflict resolution. Craig is regularly called on by his peers to act in a fiduciary capacity and has acted as court-appointed estate trustee and estate trustee during litigation.
His estate litigation practice includes representing estate trustees and beneficiaries in conflicts regarding accountings, removal of estate trustees, disposition or administration of assets, claims against beneficiaries, dependent support applications, will interpretations and other issues.
Finally, Craig has significant experience in matters of capacity and management of property and personal care. This includes many contested and uncontested guardianship applications, advising guardians and attorneys on management of property and personal care and court approval of attorney and guardian accounts. He is regularly asked to act as court appointed section 3 counsel for vulnerable individuals whose capacity is in issue.
Expertise
- Commercial Litigation,
- Wills, Estates & Trusts,
- Elder Law,
- Estate Administration,
- Estate Litigation,
- Executors and Trustees,
- Family Business Succession,
- Family Trusts,
- Guardianship and Capacity Law,
- Powers of Attorney,
- Trusts,
- Trusts for Disabled Beneficiaries,
- Wealth Management and Estate Planning,
- Wills
