We Do It Differently
Welcome to peace of mind. Estate planning in Nova Scotia is not something to be taken lightly and yet we make the process lightweight. It is often that we as lawyers are asked financial tax questions when helping our clients prepare their Wills and Estate Packages. Unfortunately, however, we are not accountants. That means we cannot advise on tax questions. That being said, we have designed a new advanced estate package which includes some of these additional tax advice related services.
- We consult with your tax accountant (or ours if you prefer)
- We consult with the Probate Court to classify your assets
- We consult with insurance and investment advisors, if necessary
Lisa Teryl
Co-founder of Teryl Scott Lawyers Inc.
Book Now
Our advanced estate planning lawyers, who serve all of Nova Scotia, can see you within the week. Your first meeting can be by video, in person or by telephone.
Select your booking preference:
by phone (902-706-5030)
or through our on-line calendar
Our Services In Advanced Estate Planning
Estate Planning Nova Scotia
Many clients with a high value estate (near or more than half a million dollars) request us to consider minimizing the taxes their estate will pay which will leave their heirs with more of the assets. They also ask us to find ways to minimize probate taxes, or avoid probate court outright. Our Halifax Wills and Estate lawyers will guide you through advanced estate planning in Nova Scotia, for all Nova Scotians.
To get started:
- We take an inventory of your assets and the approximate values of them including investments, GIC’s, pensions, RRSP’s, bank accounts and tax-free savings accounts.
What we do:
- When we talk to the accountants* --either yours or ours-- we will consider how to structure the title to the real estate you own to minimize probate fees and CRA taxes now and after you pass.
- We talk with the Probate Court who assists us to classify assets to determine which ones can be diverted away from probate and what instruments we need to set up (eg., deeds) to do so.
- You provide us with information on any life insurance policies you have and, if necessary, we will reach out to insurance brokers to provide you with insurance options and their costs that can reduce CRA taxes on the estate.
Legal Fees
Advanced Estate Planning package fees:
- For couples whose estates are separate: $2500 per individual (plus $150 admin fee and HST and expenses*). See the Wills and estate package fees if these documents are also needed.
- For couples who have their estate assets previously set up jointly: the combined cost for a couple is $3500 (plus $150 admin fee plus HST and expenses*). See the Wills and estate package fees if these documents are also needed.
*The following are typical examples of expenses: the cost of the accountant’s time, which is paid directly to the accountant and the cost of any deeds ($600 per deed plus admin fee, HST and disbursements).
Our estate package, which is the most popular, for a couple is $1095 plus a 4% admin fee and HST and a single person is $725 plus a 4% admin fee and HST. The cost of individual estate documents, such as Wills, powers of attorney, and personal directives can be found on our Wills & Estate page.
Our Testimonials
A big thank you to Lisa Teryl, for preparing our Last Will and Testament, POA, and Personal Directive. Your professionalism, and comforting personality, made this experience very easy to discuss our matters and thoroughly understand all aspects!
Your promptness to get us in and papers signed before our trip is greatly appreciated.
I highly recommend Lisa and her staff!
My husband and I recently completed our estate planning documents through Teryl Scott Lawyers. We had the pleasure of working with Lisa Teryl and her paralegal and assistant Shannon! The process was very efficient. In our initial meeting, Lisa collected the required information and explained the process. This was followed by a subsequent phone meeting where she built up the documents and confirmed all our information. And for our final meeting, Lisa stepped us through every single detail with the documents as she got us to sign them. Lisa did not make us feel rushed; she raised any flags she saw with our directions and gave us alternate but completely workable suggestions and solutions. We were also very pleased with the thought she has built into the medical directive process. This is never an easy process for anyone but Lisa left us feeling assured and comfortable about completing this estate planning process to our satisfaction. Shannon, her assistant is a delight to work with and made the administration of this process smooth. Lisa Teryl is a warm and diligent lawyer and we highly recommend Teryl Scott Lawyers firm.
We had an appointment with Lisa to get the estate package for my parents. Lisa was very professional knowledgeable, and helpful. She explained all the details in simple words to ensure we understand everything, answered all my questions. I'm really appreciate her help.
