Entitlement to Relief

Zavet v. Herzog | 2018 ONSC 3398 | Ontario Superior Court of Justice

Estates and trusts --- Estates — Dependants' relief legislation — Entitlement to relief — Spouse — Common law

Deceased was survived by his wife of almost 50 years (from whom he had long been separated), two adult daughters, and six grandchildren — His wills, which appointed his wife as trustee, divided residue of his estate equally between his wife and daughters, but did not provide for applicant, his long-time common law spouse — Applicant, who still lived in luxury condominium she had shared with deceased, brought motion for interim support pending return of her application for adequate provision for her support from his estate pursuant to Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA) — Motion for interim support granted — Under s. 58(1) of SLRA, where deceased has not made adequate provision for proper support of dependant, court may make such provision as it considers adequate to be paid from estate for dependant's support — Applicant claimed that she was entirely dependent on deceased for financial support during their relationship — Effectively, applicant sought final determination of application rather than interim amount to meet her needs pending return of application — Applicant's budget was not considered to be accurate reflection of her actual monthly expenses — Since deceased's death, she had received $900,000 from estate but had not produced any records to show how that money had been spent — Sum of $30,000 per month, net of taxes, was more than adequate to meet applicant's needs pending return of application.