Variation Of A Trust By Disclaimer

The right for a beneficiary to disclaim their interest under an estate is well-established in Ontario, traceable back to the original English courts of chancery – the fundamental principle at play being that a named beneficiary of an estate interest cannot be forced to accept a testamentary gift.

As put plainly by Chief Justice Abbott in Townson v Tickell (1819), 3 B. & Ald. 31 (Exch.) at pages 360-37:

"The law certainly is not so absurd as to force a man to take an estate against his will. Prima facie a gift, whether given by Will or otherwise, is supposed to be beneficial to the party to whom it is so given. Of that, however, he is the best judge and if it turns out that the party to whom the gift is made does not consider it to be beneficial, the law will certainly, be some mode or other, allow him to renounce or refuse the gift[...]"