Blogs written by lawyers at Highlander Law Group in Tantallon, Nova Scotia for people in Halifax with an interest in Real Estate Purchase and Sale, Corproate, Litigation, Debt Collection, Divorce, Probate, Wills, Power of Attorney, Trusts, Child support, Spousal Support, Custody, Migration, Debt Collection, Builders Liens, Estate Planning, Trademarks, Copyright and other Intellectual Property issues. .
When the judge renders their decision after a Supreme Court of Nova Scotia trial, generally for ever one party that is happy and convinced the judge got it right, there is another party that is upset and equally convinced the judge got it wrong. Read on to learn about the steps you must take if you wish to appeal.
Read MoreJudgment Orders from other jurisdictions (like other Provinces or Countries) are not automatically enforceable in Nova Scotia. To enforce the Order, you first must have the Nova Scotia courts recognize and register it here in Nova Scotia.
Read MoreA deeded easement (meaning one that is in a written agreement and tied to a specific lot of land), gives the owner of the dominant parcel of land the right to do certain specific things over or on the land of another nearby parcel. However, because an easement necessarily is burdening someone else’s land, the courts will always read the easement in as narrow a light as possible to minimize the impact on the other person’s land.
Read MoreThe important thing to remember in a circumstance such as this one is that a person can only direct who inherits their estate assets with a Will. The critical question to determine is, did the property belong to the testator at the time of his death, or was he only holding it in trust for the person he promised it to?
Read MoreAn easement is the right for the owner of one parcel of land to enjoy a specific benefit over a nearby property. If it is a ‘Deeded’ easement, it means the right was created by a documented agreement between the owners of the involved parcels of land. In Nova Scotia, deeded easements attach to the land and continue to be in force even after the parcel has changed hands
Read MoreReal Estate law in Nova Scotia is grounded in the very old legal concept, ‘caveat emptor’, which is ‘Buyer Beware’. The idea being, no one is forcing you to buy the property, so before you sign on the (digital) line, the onus is on you to ensure you really want what they are selling. That’s why you have the option to ask for permission to do a thorough home inspection and have a Property Disclosure Statement produced.
Read MoreSquatter’s Rights is the concept that if you openly adversely possession someone else’s land continuously for the required length of time (usually 20 year for privately owned land, 40 years for Crown land), that you can apply to the court for an order declaring that you have become the legal owner of that land. The idea is that a land owner can’t sit back for decades and do nothing and then come out of the woodwork and demand their land back.
Read MoreIn Nova Scotia if there is a dispute over the ownership of, or rights to the use of, land, the starting point is the Statute of Frauds. The Statute of Frauds recognizes that land ownership is so valuable, ownership can only be transferred in writing. The goal is to avoid confusion as to ownership rights to land.
Read MoreFor a variety of reasons, both the seller and the buyer are entitled to terminate a real estate purchase and sale agreement, including in rare cases after the agreement is firm (firm = all required conditions have already been met).
Read MoreIn Nova Scotia there exist time limits that decide if you can, or cannot bring your claim forward. These time periods are covered by the Limitations of Actions Act. A simple way to visualize these limitations periods are as a timer ticking down. The timer can be extended or paused, but it will still eventually run out.
Read MoreTo start a small claims court action a claimant has to file paperwork at the court. The next required step is to serve the documents on the defendant. This means they either have to pass the documents to the defendant themselves or hire or arrange for someone else to do so. If you are never personally served with documents than it’s a safe bet there is no lawsuit against you.
Read MoreDid you know there were time limits to file a claim in court? Well, there is! Depending on the type of claim you have, the amount of time you have to file can vary substantially. This period of time is called a “limitation period”. In Nova Scotia, the limitation period is determined by the type of legislation that your claim falls under. If the legislation does not set out a time period, then the Limitations of Actions Act will outline the time limits to follow.
Read More‘Damages’ is a term used to describe the monetary compensation awarded to victims of successful Personal Injury claims. They are calculated and granted by the court following the case. The Damages are an effort to reimburse the victim, as best as possible, for any losses suffered as a result of their injury. These losses could be economic, such as their ability to work for a period of time, or non-economic such as physical injuries. In conducting their calculations of the amount and types of Damages to award, the court asks itself what amount can help to put the victim in the same position they would have been had the injury not occurred.
Read MoreIn Nova Scotia, a builder’s lien that is registered against a property only stays valid for 105 days past the last day of work done on the property unless the lien is “perfected”. “Perfection” in the context of a builder’s lien means that the person who holds the lien formalizes their claim by starting a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia. If no lawsuit is started within the required time, the lien becomes completely invalid.
Read MoreIf you are having an issue and you would like to go to court but the idea of an expensive legal battle that drags out for years is not something you are interested in you might want to consider Small Claims Court in Nova Scotia. Small Claims Court is designed for matters that are for smaller amounts of money and can be decided without years worth of evidence. However, there are limits to the matters you can take to Small Claims Court.
Read MoreIf you participate in a lawsuit and lose, the judge will issue an order against you. The order will outline the details of his decision, specifically the details of what you are legally obligated to do. In many cases this involves paying somebody a certain amount of money. At this point you can simply choose to pay the amount the judge has ordered you to. However, for a lot of people this is not a realistic option.
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I was asked recently by a contractor if there was really any value in filing a builder’s lien in Nova Scotia. Reading between the lines, I gathered what he was really asking was, is it worth the money in legal fees that it would cost to go through with a builder’s lien process. The answer is, it depends.
Read MoreIn Nova Scotia small claims court is a great option for getting a ruling on issues that involve amounts totalling less than $25,000. The two main benefits are that A) every step of the way it’s quicker and B) for most people it ends up being significantly less expensive, yet you still end up with an enforceable judgement from a Nova Scotia Court.
Read MoreThe short answer is yes, you can represent yourself in Nova Scotia Small Claims Court. In fact, in Canada you can represent yourself all the way up to the Supreme Court of Canada. However, the limit for small claims court in Nova Scotia is $25,000 so if the claim you’re involved in is approaching that amount it may be well worth your money to use the expertise of a lawyer to represent you.
Read MoreWhen you make an Adverse Possession Claim that means you are saying that you believe you should now be the legal owner of a particular piece of land, replacing the person whose name is currently on the deed. The first step is determining whether you meet all the requirements. In general, you must have possessed the land for a period of 20 years in a manner that is open, continuous, notorious, adverse, and exclusive. For more details on this criteria read our blog “Squatters Rights and Adverse Possession”. If you believe you meet all theses criteria then you are in a position to make a claim
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