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Business Law, Law Practice, Succession

Graduated Rate Estate: Current Debt

Apr 13th, 2015

By Daniel Frajman

Please see my recently published article on the abovementioned topic.  The article appears in English in the March 2015 issue of Canadian Tax Highlights published by the Canadian Tax Foundation, and can be found at this link.  The article was published at the same time in French under the title “Succession assujettie à l’imposition à taux progressifs : Dette courante” in Faits saillants en fiscalité canadienne published by the Canadian Tax Foundation, and can be found at this link.

I really like this article because it raises the possibility of using contractual principles to help solve a tax problem.

This article refers to the possibility of inadvertently tainting (so that it will not be a graduated rate estate) the estate of the second spouse to die under a testamentary spousal trust if the estate of the first spouse to die pays taxes owed by the estate of the second spouse to die arising in connection with the trust on the death of the latter spouse.

This article raises the possibility of using a Quebec marriage contract, rather than a will or a codicil, in order to avoid this tax problem.

Daniel Frajman, TEP, a shareholder of Spiegel Sohmer, a Montreal law firm, negotiates and drafts contracts for business and real estate sales and purchase transactions, leases, debt and equity financings, shareholders’ agreements, trusts, wills, and for non-taxable non-profit and charitable businesses.