Can a solicitor owe a duty of care to a beneficiary?

Ontario, Canada


The following excerpt is from Vincent v. Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, 2013 ONSC 980 (CanLII):

The concurring decision of Berger J.A. in Graham v. Bonnycastle acknowledges that there may be other situations where a solicitor could owe a duty of care to a beneficiary, at para. 59 of that decision: The duty of a wills solicitor is to protect the testator from making devises of his estate other than those which he actually intends. In fulfilling her duties to her client, the solicitor will only owe a duty to a former beneficiary where the solicitor has negligently excluded that beneficiary from his rightful bequest contrary to the testator's "true" intentions. By "true" intentions I am referring to the intentions of the testator at the moment he or she possessed the requisite testamentary capacity. When such a duty is imposed, it is difficult to imagine a situation where the duty owed to the testator's best interests is at odds with the duty owed to a former beneficiary who is rightfully owed a testamentary gift. The duties are one and the same, for it is in the testator's best interests that all of his "true" testamentary wishes be carried out after his passing.

Other Questions


What is the test for designation of a beneficiary when a beneficiary dies? (Ontario, Canada)
What is the proper interpretation of s. 17 of the Solicitors Act, s.16(1) of the Solicitor’s Act? (Ontario, Canada)
Can a court order costs against a solicitor personally where the solicitor breached his or her professional obligations to opposing counsel or to the opposing counsel? (Ontario, Canada)
Can solicitor-client privilege apply to communications between solicitor and client? (Ontario, Canada)
What is a solicitor's duty to return documents from opposing counsel that are governed by solicitor client privilege? (Ontario, Canada)
Is a solicitor and client entitled to costs on a solicitor-and-client scale? (Ontario, Canada)
Does solicitor privilege apply to communications between solicitor and client? (Ontario, Canada)
What privilege does solicitor privilege apply to confidential communications between solicitor and client? (Ontario, Canada)
Can a solicitor be found to have imparted confidential information to a client for another solicitor? (Ontario, Canada)
What factors must the court consider in deciding whether to grant a solicitor's solicitor removal motion? (Ontario, Canada)
X



Alexi white


"The most advanced legal research software ever built."

Trusted by top litigators from across North America.