If you own a home in Ontario, chances are you—or someone on your street—has had a disagreement with a neighbour over a fence. Whether it’s about who pays for it, where it goes, or how it looks, fences are one of the most common causes of tension between neighbours. What…

Kelly Santini LLP’s JP Zubec and Neelum Raja secured a decisive victory in Scharfe v. Poirier Estate. On January 24, 2025, the Honourable Justice Hackland overturned the transfer of real property by an elderly woman to her adult son, determining that the conveyance had to be set aside on the…

Kelly Santini LLP’s JP Zubec and Neelum Raja secured a significant estate litigation victory at the Ontario Court of Appeal on behalf of their client. On January 17, 2025, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the July 28, 2023, decision of the Honourable Justice Gomery to remove a co-Estate Trustee…

In Fall 2024, Ontario announced upcoming amendments to the Construction Act, following a five-year review of the broad changes implemented during 2018 and 2019.  Perhaps the most significant upcoming change is the decision to impose mandatory expiry of liens and release of holdback on an annual basis: each year, all…

As of January 1, 2025, the 2024 Ontario Building Code will officially take effect. However, transition rules allow for the submission of new building permit applications under the existing 2012 Code until April 1, 2025, provided that applicants can demonstrate that their working drawings were substantially complete by December 31,…

Kelly Santini’s Shawn O’Connor represented a film producer in a personal injury action brought by an actor in the film who suffered a dog bite on the film set during filming. After a two-day hearing before the Workplace Safety and Insurance Tribunal we were successful in obtaining a declaration that…

The Ontario Construction Act (the “Ontario Act”) introduced construction adjudications in late 2019. Since then, there has been an increasing uptake of adjudications in Ottawa, and across Ontario.  Between 2022 and 2023, the number of construction adjudications commenced in Ontario more than doubled, with 269 adjudications being commenced in 2023,…

The one question that estate planning lawyers receive from clients and prospective clients most often is, “Why do I need a Will?”  While this is a complex question, there are many compelling reasons why everyone should have a Will. Estate planning is a crucial aspect of financial and personal planning…