Author: Jane Collis

26 Nov 2015

Jane Collis
For a diversity of reasons, many of us are unwilling to properly contemplate our own beliefs and preferences concerning the subject of end-of-life care. Some of us are young enough that we have no sense of our own mortality – we are invincible and have the advantage of a seemingly infinite time horizon to get serious about the serious stuff. Others of us are older and although we want to be responsible adults and save our families from the stress of making life and death decisions on our behalf, we also worry that we may be tempting fate by making plans. The same holds true for those of us suffering from chronic and/or terminal illness. At the end of life, whenever and however that may unfold, the best that we can hope to achieve is death with comfort and dignity, in whatever manner each of us conceives of that. There is quite possibly no more important issue about which to exercise self-determination. For this reason, for the purposes of enshrining our end of life preferences, so there may be no doubt of our wishes, everyone should have an “Advance Directive for Healthcare” or “Living Will”.
21:02 / Wills, Trusts & Estates
26 Nov 2015

Jane Collis
None of us likes to consider the possibility that we may one day find ourselves unable to manage our own affairs. It is a boon that we can expect to live longer, but longer life often involves a loss of independence, and the possibility of that loss of independence necessitates forward planning. It is essential to ensure that someone can take up your day to day responsibilities in the event that you lose physical or mental capacity and one of the simplest and most cost-effective tools available for these purposes is the Enduring Power of Attorney (“EPOA”).
16:14 / Wills, Trusts & Estates
05 Nov 2014

Jane Collis
The Bermuda statistics on aging in Bermuda should be a wake-up call to all of us that our senior citizens require greater legal protection than our laws currently offer. By 2020 there will be 30 seniors (aged 65 and over) for every 100 persons of working age (aged 15 to 64). By the same year, there will be 75 men for every 100 women. Many senior Bermudians have relied on rental income from real estate to supplement their pension income. As we know, the Contributory Pension Fund is vastly underfunded, the rental property market is soft and seniors are being “encouraged” out of the job market. At the same time, many seniors are also providing for their children and grandchildren, who themselves are feeling the financial pinch. The combination of parental generosity, coupled with an aging parent’s increasing vulnerability, can have devastating consequences.
19:10 / Wills, Trusts & Estates
23 Jul 2014

Jane Collis
...it would seem that, unnoticed by the equity judges and academics over the centuries, actions subsequently regretted by trustees have a quality of reversibility. It appears that Doctor Equity can administer a magical morning after pill to trustees suffering from post-transaction remorse, but not to anyone else.[1]
The Trustee Amendment Act 2014 (the “Act”) (35 KB PDF) will have the effect of amending the Trustee Act 1975 to introduce a new section 47(A), giving the court jurisdiction to set aside the exercise of a fiduciary power, which has gone wrong, thereby enshrining in law the “Rule in Hastings-Bass”, referred to by Lord Neuberger in commentary as a “magical morning-after pill”. In the case of Hastings-Bass,[2] Lord Justice Brown laid down the following, which became known as the “Rule in Hastings-Bass”:
16:27 / Bermuda Case Law & Legislation / Wills, Trusts & Estates
23 May 2014

Jane Collis
In vitro fertilization and cryo-preservation of eggs, sperm and excess embryos, has become a routine procedure in much of the world. Bermuda does not have a sperm bank or a storage facility for embryos. Nor does Bermuda have an IVF clinic. But there are many Bermudians who travel overseas for fertility treatment and, in their excitement over the possibility of parenthood, are likely to give little thought to the nature of their interest in their own genetic material. Likewise, eggs and sperm are frequently stored by men and women undergoing chemotherapy, who may suffer sterility as a consequence of treatment.
19:00 / Wills, Trusts & Estates
07 Feb 2014

Jane Collis
The facts of recent UK case Marley v Rawlings (260 KB PDF) were straightforward. Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings gave instructions to their solicitor to prepare identical wills, each leaving their estate to the other, but if the other had already died, to their “adopted son, Terry Marley”. The Rawlings had two biological sons, who were effectively disinherited by these wills. Unfortunately and inadvertently, husband and wife each signed the other’s will as a consequence of the solicitor handing the wrong will to the wrong person. The mistake was discovered on the death of Mr. Rawlings, several years after the death of Mrs. Rawlings, and the Rawlings’ biological sons challenged the will.
14:02 / Wills, Trusts & Estates
24 Jul 2013

Jane Collis
If you should become incapacitated without an Enduring Power of Attorney, an application to the Supreme Court for the appointment of a receiver may be the only option for your loved ones to manage your affairs. The baby boomers are growing older and those of us who fall into this category need to be prepared for what may lie ahead. Do you know what will happen to you and your property in the event that you become incapacitated? Those who have planned ahead will have signed an Enduring Power of Attorney, giving someone authority to manage their property and affairs in such circumstances, and an Advance Treatment Directive, giving someone the power to make medical treatment decisions on their behalf. This option will still be available to you if your incapacity should be physical, but it will be altogether too late if you should become mentally incapacitated.
17:42 / Property Law / Wills, Trusts & Estates
14 Jun 2013

Jane Collis
The principle of separate legal personality of a company has been affirmed in yesterday’s Supreme Court case of Prest v. Petrodel Resources Limited, and the principles upon which the court will act to “pierce the corporate veil” have been clarified, but it remains the case that upon divorce, the court will look carefully at the reality of the structure to achieve a fair distribution of assets. The decision has important implications for all those engaged in the trusts and corporate services business. A unanimous Supreme Court overturned the decision of the Court of Appeal yesterday in the case of Prest v. Petrodel Resources Limited and others [2013] UKSC 34 (400 KB PDF). At stake was the issue of whether it is open to the court, in an application for ancillary relief in divorce proceedings, to treat assets of a company of which one spouse is the sole controller as being assets to which that spouse is “entitled” for the purposes of Section 24(1)(a) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. Lying at the heart of the matter are the competing objectives of the commercial and family law divisions, the former of which seeks adherence to established legal principles to ensure commercial certainty for parties dealing at arm’s length, while the latter aims to achieve a “fair result” in circumstances where the parties are dealing at anything but arm’s length.
13:29 / Company & Commercial Law / Family Law / Wills, Trusts & Estates