Following the intestate death of the deceased, his common-law spouse and children disputed the distribution of his estate.
The children claimed their share as beneficiaries, while the spouse argued the children had gifted their shares to her or, alternatively, that she was entitled to dependant support.
The court found that the children had made a valid inter vivos gift of the family home to the spouse, but not of the deceased's personal property or RRSPs.
The court also awarded the spouse dependant support under the Succession Law Reform Act, fixed at 50% of the deceased's personal property, with the residue to be shared equally among the children.
