What's new at Pallett Valo LLP

A huge congratulations is in order to our friends at Pallett Valo LLP for all of the amazing things happening at their offices-including some very exciting awards! Check it out!

Awards and Accomplishments

Our firm and our lawyers have won some exciting awards over the past year. Thank you to our colleagues and our clients for voting for us.

Canadian Lawyer Top 10 Ontario Regional Law Firm

Pallett Valo LLP was selected as one of Ontario’s top 10 regional law firms by the readers of Canadian Lawyer Magazine for the 3rd consecutive time: 2011, 2013 & 2015. Canadian Lawyer asked its readers, mostly lawyers and in-house counsel from across Canada, to vote on Ontario’s top full-service regional firms. Rankings were based on firms’ regional service coverage, client base, notable mandates, service excellence, and legal expertise. Pallett Valo LLP is honoured to have obtained a 4th place ranking in the magazine’s September 2015 issue.

Mississauga Business Times Readers’ Choice Top Performers 2015

Pallett Valo LLP was voted the Platinum Award Winner for the Lawyers category in the Mississauga Business Times Readers’ Choice Top Performers 2015 awards. Since 2007, Pallett Valo LLP has been voted the Platinum Award Winner seven times and the Gold Award Winner twice.

Best Lawyers in Canada®

For the 10th consecutive year, Anna Esposito, certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Specialist in Construction Law, has been selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada in the field of Construction Litigation.

Craig Ross has been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada® in the field of Trusts and Estates. Craig heads up Pallett Valo’s Wills, Estates & Trusts Group and has established himself as one of the leading lawyers in his field of expertise.

Introducing the Newest Members of Our Team

As the largest law firm in Peel Region, Pallett Valo LLP continues to focus on our growth in order to serve our clients. We are pleased to announce the addition of our newest colleagues:

New Construction Lawyer

Vivian Awad has become a member of our Construction Practice. Vivian provides advice and representation with respect to collections, construction liens, breach of trust, contract disputes and other matters typically encountered by those in the construction industry.

New Commercial Litigation Lawyer

Manpreet Brar summered and articled with us, and now returns as a member of the Commercial Litigation Practice and the Employment & Labour Practice.

For more on Pallett Valo LLP or to view the PDF of their recent accomplishments click here.

Estate Administration Tax (E.A.T)

Did you know that as of January 1^st 2015 the Ontario Liberals put into effect a new tax called the Estate Administration Tax (E.A.T). The following outlines points on an article written by GuelphSpeaks on E.A.T. (For the full article, click the link at the bottom of this blog).

E.A.T is essentially a tax that is imposed on the estate of a deceased person. After death, your survivors and executors have exactly 90 days to report the value of all your belongings. Everything from valuables, cars and trucks, second homes, boats, RV’s, right down to the exercise bicycle in the basement. And depending on the size of the given estate, your fees owing could run into the thousands.

To give you a better idea, here are the current E.A.T tax rates.

•    $5 for each $1,000, or part thereof, of the first $50,000 of the value of the estate, 

           and

•    $15 for each $1,000, or part thereof, of the value of the estate exceeding $50,000.

Note: There is no estate administration tax payable if the value of the estate is $1,000 or less.

The estate administration tax is calculated on the total value of the estate. For example, for an estate valued at $240,000 the tax would be calculated as follows:

•    $5 per thousand for the first $50,000 of the estate
•    $50,000 ÷ $1,000 = $50
•    $50 X $5 = $250

Plus

•    $15 per thousand for the remaining $190,000 of the estate
•    $240,000 – $50,000 = $190,000
•    $190,000 ÷ $1,000 = $190 
•    $190 X $15 = $2,850

This means you would owe a total of $3,100 ($250 + $2,850) payable to the Minister of Finance. The E.A.T act states that the executors or appointed representatives must complete the E.A.T return within 90 days.

Want to know more? To read the full article, click the link below.

https://guelphspeaks.wordpress.com/2015/09/03/ontario-liberals-now-tax-your-stuff-after-you-die/

The Scoop On Investment Fees

 Investment Fees FAQ's

What are the different kinds of fees involved? 
There are two main categories of fees, investment management fees and sales charges.

For investment management, also known as a Management Expense Ratio (MER), fees vary depending on the size of your portfolio, the investment company and the product selection. As independent Investment Advisors we are able to find the right investment at the right fee level to fit your needs. A typical MER for an investment we would recommend ranges from 1.2% to 2.5%. There are four main types of sales charge loads

Deferred Sales Charge (DSC): When depositing your money into a DSC investment there is no upfront charge to you, the client, but on withdrawal or transfer out there is a declining scale based on the amount of time the money has been invested. For example: 5-6% in year 1, declining to 0% in years 6-7.

Note: Within the DSC environment, we are often able to switch between investments within the same investment company without incurring a DSC charge. Only for accounts help at Continuum II with less than $100,000 in investments, your funds will likely be purchased on a DSC basis, but with your consent in advance.

Low Load (LL): Low load fund charges operate similar to a DSC but offer a lower sales charge (For example: 2.5% to 3%) and have a much shorter schedule, often 3 years, rather than the DSC schedule of 6 to 7 years. The Low Load schedule is used for accounts held at Continuum II between $100,000 and $250,000 in investments.

No Load (NL): A No Load fund doesn't charge a fee when units or shares are bought and sold.  For accounts between $250,000 and $500,000 in investments, Continuum II is able to offer a no load schedule.

Reduced Fee (F Class): F Class differs from the above examples as it unbundles the advisor commission from the MER and there is no LL or DSC sales charges. For $1 Million + in investments, an example of F Class would work like this: The Advisor compensation of 0.75%, plus the management fee of 0.80%, for a totally cost before tax of 1.55%.

Are F class fees tax deductible? Typically, yes, with certain limitations. Registered accounts (RRSPs/RESPs/TFSAs) F class fees are not tax deductible. For non-registered accounts, investment advice fees may be tax deductible. The fee needs to be in relation to investment advice, and should always be confirmed by your accountant.