Following the death of their mother, three brothers brought an action on behalf of her estate against their fourth brother, alleging he misappropriated significant estate assets including real estate, securities, and gold through joint accounts and transfers.
The defendant claimed the assets were inter vivos gifts.
The Superior Court of Justice applied the presumption of resulting trust and found the defendant failed to rebut it, noting the mother's lack of capacity due to dementia and significant inconsistencies in the defendant's evidence.
The court granted a tracing order, awarding the estate a 69.5% interest in a property purchased by the defendant with the misappropriated funds, plus monetary damages.
The defendant's counterclaims for improvident sale of the family home and return of TFSA funds were dismissed.
