Practicing Wills, Estates & Trusts Law During COVID-19, Part II

Course Instructors
Eric B. Clavier — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver
Fiona Hunter — Horne Coupar LLP, Victoria

About the Course Instructors
Eric Clavier is a trust and estate litigation lawyer at Fasken in Vancouver. After completing his studies at the University of Pretoria, Eric was called to the South African Bar in 2000. He practised as a barrister in the Republic of South Africa for 12 years (South Africa has a split legal profession, like in the UK), gaining extensive trial and motion experience, and appeared at all levels of court, including various appearances in the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa.

After moving to Canada in August 2012, Eric completed the Federation of Law Societies of Canada's NCA exams in 2013. Following truncated articles at Fasken in 2014, Eric was called to the BC bar in 2014, where he now appears regularly before the Supreme Court of BC and BC Court of Appeal.

Eric's practice involves assisting clients with contentious matters related to wills, trusts, undue influence and incapacity claims, committeeship applications, unjust enrichment claims, breach of fiduciary duties cases, abuse of powers of attorney claims, breach of trust claims, and passing of accounts.

Eric is a member of the CBA, the CBABC Wills & Trusts Section, the CBABC Elder Law Section, and The Advocates Society. Eric is the President of the board of directors of Seniors First BC and the co-chair of the CBABC Elder Law Section Executive. Eric has given presentations on various topics, including trusts in the corporate context, powers of attorney, joint tenancy, family law in estate planning, corporate shares on disability, wills variation considerations, effective planning tips to avoid later litigation, and ways to safeguard your family, fortune and future.

Fiona Hunter is a partner at Horne Coupar LLP, named one of Canada's Top 5 Trusts & Estates Law Boutiques by Canadian Lawyer. Fiona practices exclusively in estate planning with an emphasis on trusts and acts as a mediator in estate litigation. Fiona authors the Canadian edition of Drafting Trusts and Will Trusts in Canada (LexisNexis Canada 2016, 4th ed) and is a co-editor of and contributor to two publications: Financial and Estate Planning for the Mature Client in BC (LexisNexis Butterworths) and British Columbia Estate Planning and Wealth Preservation (CLEBC). She also authors an online wills practice resource for LexisNexis and has been qualified as an expert in the area of trust law by the Supreme Court of BC. As a former Assistant Adjunct Professor at the University of Victoria, she taught the Succession course at the Faculty of Law and continues to speak at conferences across Canada on the subject of trusts. Fiona has just completed two terms on the University of Victoria Foundation and the board of the Art Gallery of Victoria. She is a member of the CBA, the International Society of Estate and Trust Practitioners, and the Estate Planning Council of Victoria. Fiona has been recognized by her peers for inclusion in the Best Lawyers in Canada since 2008.

Practice Tips and Information for Estate Planners

• update on estate administration challenges
• update on legislative proposals for signing wills
• assessing client's capacity remotely
• identifying undue influence remotely
• working with staff remotely

Practice Tips and Information for Estate Litigators

• limitation periods
• remote examinations for discovery and alternatives
• remote court appearances
• mediating by webcam