Toronto Estates and Trusts Monitor

An economic downturn is a time when many people scale back – including, the Los Angeles Times reports, on pet funerals.  While people still seem willing to spend money on their living pets, there’s been significant belt-tightening when it comes to bidding Fido and Fluffy a final farewell. 

While pricey burials were once en vogue, the recent trend has been towards pet cremation.  In the United States, there are about 290 pet cemeteries and crematoriums and saying good bye to a pet doesn’t come cheap. 

A pet burial might set you back $800; however, a cremation comes in at a much more economical $80 (the actual price will depend on the weight of the pet).  Additionally, by opting for cremation, pet owners are able to save money on burial-related accessories, such as caskets (which, at the Sea Breeze Pet Cemetery in Huntington Beach, California, go for as much as $375) and grave markers (which start at $275).  

The increase in popularity of pet cremation has had positive financial effects for some pet cemeteries.  Sea Breeze operates its crematorium six days a week.  Additionally, cremation-related items such as urns and memorial items are seeing increased demand. 

For the pet owners who want to keep things eco-friendly, green funerals aren’t just limited to people – there are options available for pets as well.  Let Your Love Grow is an eco-friendly line that offers biodegradable urns and burial items aimed to break down cremated remains over time so that the nutrients can be released to the soil.       

Last September I blogged about the increasing popularity of eco-friendly burials.  While encouraging environmentally sound burial practices might sound like a good thing, not everyone wants them going on in their backyard.

Some residents in a neighbourhood in Ajax (about 30 minutes from Toronto) are none too pleased about proposals to rezone a section of a golf course near their homes as a natural burial site. 

The objective of natural burial is to dispose of the body in a chemical-free way and in a manner that does not inhibit decomposition.  Typically, the body is interred in a shroud or biodegradable coffin and without being embalmed.  Rather than traditional headstones, graves are marked by trees and shrubs. 

About 40 residents near the proposed burial site are concerned about the impact it will have on their homes.  The issues raised range from worries that gases emitted during decomposition will enter into the soil and the groundwater source (thus requiring frequent water testing) to concerns that summer barbecues will disrupted by burials taking place on the other side of the garden hedge.

John Overzet, the owner of the golf course responds that the complaints of residents were addressed a year and a half ago and that the cemetery will pose no hazard. Specifically, he points out that local health authorities are aware of the proposed cemetery and have raised no concerns.  Additionally, natural burials are governed by the Cemeteries Act in Ontario, which includes various requirements regarding burial, including the minimum depth of the grave site.

If the plans for the cemetery are approved, Mr. Overzet estimates that it will be another five years before it is operational.  His hope is that within the first 10 – 15 years of operation, 10,000 burials will take place.     

Several months ago, I blogged about the growing popularity of funeral webcasting services. However, those who want a more personal touch, but are short on time, might appreciate the convenience of drive-thru funeral homes. 

This past weekend, the Los Angeles Times reported on the Adams Funeral Home, in Compton, California which includes amongst its services, drive-thru visitations. This involves placing the deceased's casket in a glass display window visible to drivers passing through a drive-thru lane. 

Adams Funeral Home is owned by Peggy Scott Adams, a Grammy-nominated gospel singer. It was Peggy’s late husband, Robert Adams (a local politician) who initially came up with the idea for drive-thru viewings.  According to the video that accompanies the article, Robert came up with the idea after seeing funeral homes in the south that offered video displays of the funeral outside the building – he thought he could improve on the concept. 

The funeral home’s business has been brisk – it was especially good in the late 80s when gang violence in Los Angeles was high.  Cemetery shoot outs had made gang members reluctant to attend gang funerals, so the bullet proof glass used for the partition at the funeral home made it a popular venue. 

These days, the benefits of drive-thru funerals are slightly more vanilla in nature – seniors can stay in the car and those in wheel chairs have easier access to the viewing.  In addition, it is less complicated for family members of the deceased and, in the case of community leaders, more people can attending the viewing. 

Funerals start at $1,295 and despite the success of the company’s drive-thru business, traditional visitations are still the most popular. 

For the past few months, I’ve been seeing advertisements for the company Basic Funerals in various subway stations in Toronto, so a recent article in the Globe & Mail about the company caught my eye. 

Basic Funerals bills itself as the first funeral company to give people the option of arranging funerals in person, over the phone, or online.  The web-based service gives family members the ability to arrange their loved one’s funeral from the comfort of home.

The services include visitation, grave-side services, cremation, burial, and basic estate services (such as transferring air miles or applying for a CPP death benefit).  Costs vary; however, in Toronto, a complete basic cremation package starts at $1,674, a burial and graveside service starts at $1,800, and a basic funeral with casket starts at $3,500.     

The company’s web-based model represents a fundamental shift from the traditional model employed by funeral providers.  Typically, a funeral business involves high overhead – it will operate out of a fixed premises, keep merchandise and equipment onsite, and will employ staff.  Basic Funerals’ goal is to be as automated as possible and to offer funeral services at about half the price of traditional funeral providers.

While the company heavily promotes its web-based service, clients are also able to arrange funerals over the phone or in person.  Basic Funerals is a licensed funeral establishment and contracts with the clients to provide services/merchandise directly. 

Since the company’s inception in 2009, it has arranged over 1500 funerals in Ontario and has recently expanded its services to Colorado and Illinois.   

One of the obligations of an executor is to arrange for the deceased’s funeral and burial.  However, it is not uncommon for an individual to die without a will, leaving no one with the legal authority to dispose of the deceased’s remains.  Sometimes this isn’t a huge issue – the deceased’s next of kin agree on the manner of burial.  However, when they can’t agree, problems can arise.

This was the situation in the recent decision of Buswa v. Canzoneri.  By way of background, the deceased died unexpectedly without a will, and was survived by seven siblings (who were the applicants in the proceeding).  After the deceased’s death, an individual came forward alleging that she was his daughter (this was denied by the siblings). She was the respondent in the proceeding.   

Unfortunately, a disagreement arose over the proper burial of the deceased’s remains.  The deceased was a member of the Whitefish River First Nation, as were his siblings (the applicants) and they wanted him to be buried in accordance with traditional Anishnabek practices.  The respondent argued that at the time of his death the deceased was no longer an adherent to the Anishnabek belief system and had wanted to be cremated. 

The applicants brought a motion seeking the appointment of an estate trustee during litigation for the limited purpose of disposing of the deceased’s remains.  S. 29(1) of the Estates Act provides that where there is no will naming an executor, the court has the discretion to appoint (a) the deceased’s spouse/common law partner; (b) the deceased’s next of kin; or (c) the partner and the next of kin. 

Although “next of kin” is not defined in the Estates Act, Justice Stinson (the motion judge) considered definitions of the term found in various legal texts and determined that it referred to the person most closely related to the deceased.  Stinson J. then considered whether he was satisfied that the respondent was the deceased’s natural child. 

While there was no DNA evidence and the deceased and the respondent did not meet until 2008, Stinson J. found other evidence to suggest a father/daughter relationship (such as that the deceased had signed a statutory declaration that he was the respondent’s father).  He decided that on a balance of probabilities  the respondent was the deceased’s natural daughter.

Stinson J. then concluded that as the deceased’s natural daughter, the respondent qualified as his “next of kin” and, accordingly, appointed her as estate trustee during litigation for the purpose of dealing with the deceased’s remains.     

A mysterious visitor's annual ritual of leaving cognac and roses at Edgar Allan Poe’s graveside appears to have come to an end after more than sixty years. 

Poe was born in Boston on January 19, 1809.  His early life was difficult – his father abandoned the family when Poe was young and his mother died a year later from consumption. 

Poe moved to New York in the early 1830s, which is when his publishing career took off.  He would become known for his macabre tales and poems.  While Poe enjoyed prominence, he had difficulty supporting himself as a writer and would frequently have to borrow money.  Over time, his behaviour started to become erratic and he developed a drinking problem (apparently fuelled by the sudden death of his wife).  Poe died in 1849, at the age of 40 under mysterious circumstances – his cause of death is still unknown and theories have included suicide, murder, alcoholism, and hypoglycemia.

Poe's funeral was a simple one and reportedly was attended by few.  He was interred at the Westminster Hall and Burying Ground, initially without a gravestone - although one was put in place in 1875.

The mysterious visits to Poe's grave apparently started in the 1940s (and were first referenced in print in the Evening Sun, a Baltimore paper, in 1949.)  The “Poe toaster”, as the visitor was called, was always dressed in black, and wore a white scarf and a wide-brimmed hat. The visits continued every year on the anniversary of Poe’s birth, with the visitor leaving a half-empty bottle of cognac and three roses on Poe’s gravestone.  

In 1993, the visitor started leaving notes and one left in 1998 indicated that original Poe toaster had died and the tradition had been passed to his two sons.  Apparently, the sons didn’t take the duty seriously and in 2009 the visits stopped. Why is unclear, although the fact that 2009 was the 200th anniversary of Poe’s birth might have had something to do with it.

It remains to be seen whether the Poe toaster will reappear.  In the meantime, various “faux Toasters” have taken up the mantle and have been trying to reenact the ritual themselves.  

When a loved one dies, friends and family often want to pay their final respects – however, geographically-scattered relatives, a depressed economy, and busy schedules can all make it difficult to say “good bye”.  

For times when you can’t attend a loved one’s funeral, now you can watch it live on the internet.  An increasing number of funeral providers are embracing the web and offering funeral webcasting services. 

Funeral webcasts work in the same way as any other webcast – there’s a provider (usually a funeral home) which streams live feed of the funeral or memorial service.  In some cases, it’s also possible to have the burial webcast.

Most services then allow the webcast to remain online for a fixed period of time.  While the webcast can be streamed so it’s available to everyone, it can also be password protected, so as to keep out the voyeurs. 

While some funeral service providers have been offering the option for years, traditional webcasting companies are now becoming more involved and offering the technology as well.  Some of the reasons for the increasing popularity are technology based – equipment and broadband are both less expensive and better quality. Although to a large degree it’s also an inevitable by-product of the fact that the internet is now such an integral part of everyday life. 

While funeral webcasting is wonderful at bringing everyone together, some think that it is also helpful in keeping people apart.  This video notes that it is a useful alternative in situations where you don't want certain people attending your loved one's funeral - I suppose that instead of sending an invitation, you simply send a username and password and hope they get the picture.

A recent article in the Economist, “Exit Strategies – Innovations for a Conservative Industry,” discusses the environmental damage that comes from traditional burial rites and the eco-friendlier options that are emerging.   

The harm generally starts shortly after death with the embalming process and the harmful chemicals used.  It continues as the body is moved to a coffin, frequently made of valuable hardwood such as oak or mahogany.   

Neither cremation nor traditional burial are particularly kind to the environment.  Cremating a body reportedly produces 160 kg of carbon dioxide as well as other gases and chemicals.  Traditional burial is even more harmful – by combining the formaldehyde, wood, and cement involved, with the ongoing maintenance required of gravesites (such as lawn mowing), burial creates an even larger carbon footprint than does cremation – and that’s leaving aside the issue of land scarcity. 

Perhaps as a natural offshoot of the trend towards “living green,” there is now an increasing interest in “dying green.” There are a number of companies that supply environmentally friendly funeral products.  For example, Passages International offers such green options as wicker caskets and cornstarch eco-urns. 

Environmentally friendly methods of disposing of bodies are also becoming more popular.  Since the late 1990s, natural burial grounds have been opening in the United States (although they do not appear to have made it to Canada yet).  The objective of natural burial is to dispose of the body in a chemical-free way, in a manner that does not inhibit decomposition.

With natural burial, people are buried unembalmed, in a biodegradable coffin (usually 2-3 feet below ground, rather than the usual 6 feet).  Headstones are typically modest and made of natural materials – although, in some natural cemeteries, there are no grave markers and instead grass and wildflowers are left to create a meadow.    

Eco-friendly cremation options are also emerging – resomation breaks down the body in a water and alkali-based solution and what remains is dried into a powder, while promession involves freeze-drying the body with liquid nitrogen then turning it into dust with ultrasonic vibration. 

While eco-friendly burial methods are kinder on the environment, they’re not necessarily kinder on the wallet – they cost about the same as a traditional burial or cremation.