Her husband bought a $500,000 policy then vanished. Eight years later, the court declared him dead — but was he?

by admin | May 4, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

What happens when the law declares you dead — and then, years later, changes its mind? It sounds like the plot of a mystery novel, but for one Quebec family it became a very real legal nightmare, raising unsettling questions about life, death and the limits of legal...

Family saga highlights why title insurance is a must as judge upholds decision in daughter’s mortgage fraud

by admin | Apr 20, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Even if it is arranged long after the initial purchase, it’s important for all property owners to have title insurance, Bob Aaron writes. An appeal decision of Ontario’s Divisional Court has put an end to a bitter family dispute in which a woman stole the title to her...

New home buyers have just won the HST-rebate lottery. Here’s all you need to know

by admin | Apr 6, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

New home buyers have just won the HST-rebate lottery. Here’s all you need to know. It must be like winning the lottery. Any first-time buyer who bought or buys a new home or condo as a principal residence after March 20, 2025 — last year — can look forward to...

Refinancing your mortgage? Here’s why you need a lawyer before blindly signing anything

by admin | Mar 23, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Refinancing a home may feel routine, writes Bob Aaron, but it is not trivial. The efficiency of online ‘closing centres’ comes at a cost to the consumer: less scrutiny, less explanation, and less accountability. Bob Aaron is a Toronto real estate lawyer and a...

Beware the rules of your condominium — or you may end paying $10,000 for a doorbell

by admin | Mar 9, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Condo owners, writes Bob Aaron, do not have the freedoms they would enjoy in freehold homes, and must adhere to bylaws. Just ask the couple who wound up in court over a dishwasher and a doorbell. This is a true story about a $10,000 doorbell. It took place in a...

Judge awards luxury home seller eye-popping amount when lakefront Port Credit deal falls through

by admin | Feb 23, 2026 | 2026 Toronto Star Property Law Columns, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

An Ontario judge has handed down a record high damages award in a case involving a breach of a single-family residential real estate purchase. In a decision released in December 2025, Justice Paul Sweeny awarded the seller a staggering $2,385,000 representing his...