The parties separated after a 32-year marriage.
The applicant's father had established a highly successful business.
Before the marriage, the father settled a trust holding shares in the business for the applicant.
During the marriage, the applicant received the shares and later participated in an estate freeze, transferring the shares to a holding company in exchange for preferred shares, while a new trust (the NFT) acquired the common shares.
The applicant and her children were discretionary beneficiaries of the NFT.
The main issue was whether the applicant's interest in the NFT was property subject to equalization, and if so, whether it was excluded as a gift.
The court found the interest was property, but bound by the Court of Appeal's decision in Shinder v. Shinder, held it was an excluded gift.
The court also determined the valuation of various assets, dismissed the respondent's unjust enrichment claim to a cottage, and ordered the applicant to pay an equalization payment of $1.18M and needs-based spousal support of $25,649 per month.
