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Opening Plenary Speaker:
Sindy Wong, CPA
Partner, Smythe LLP
Opening Plenary Speaker:
Ian Worland, LLB, TEP
Principal, Legacy Tax + Trust Lawyers
October 30, 2025
8:30am - 4:30pm
Vancouver Convention Centre, West Building
Current Issues. Trusted Experts. Meaningful Connections.
Presented by CPABC in conjunction with the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) Vancouver branch, this joint conference-format PD Day is a must-attend event for estate planning practitioners, including professional accountants, lawyers, trust officers, and other financial professionals.
Why you should attend
- Stay ahead with the latest estate planning insights
- Gain access to highly regarded speakers covering the most relevant estate planning issues
- Connect with other estate planning professionals to expand your network
Register Now
Eligible CPD Hours: 7
Course Fee: $475
PD Passport: 12 credits
Estate Planning Insights
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 8:30 - 8:45am | Welcome and Introductory Remarks |
8:45 - 10:00am | Evolving Certainties: Tax Update for Estate Planners Presenters: Death and taxes remain certain, but the rules continue to change. Obtain an overview of recent tax legislative amendments, court decisions, and CRA rulings and interpretations relating to tax in the estate planning context. |
| 10:00 - 10:15am | Break |
10:15 - 11:15am | From the Bench to the Bedside: Estate & Trust Law Update Presenters: Review key court decisions in estates and trusts law since 2023, and learn what these decisions mean for estate planning professionals and their clients. |
| 11:15 - 11:30am | Break |
11:30am - 12:30pm | Exit Ahead: Business Succession Opportunities Presenters: This presentation will review current law and developments affecting business owners planning for ownership succession. Topics covered will include intergenerational business transfer rules, lifetime capital gains exemption increases, the Canadian Entrepreneur’s Incentive, and employee ownership trusts. A Fading Light: Advising Clients with Declining Capacity Presenters: As clients age and face cognitive challenges, advisors must balance respect for independence with a duty to protect. This session explores how to recognize signs of diminished capacity, navigate ethical and legal obligations, work with substitute decision-makers, and recognize possible abuse. Attendees will gain practical tools for documentation, communication, and risk management when advising vulnerable clients. |
| 12:30 - 1:45pm | Lunch |
1:45 - 2:45pm
| Autonomy, Benefits and Care: The ABCs of Disability Planning in BC Presenter: This session will provide a practical overview and update on disability planning in British Columbia, focusing on tools and strategies that protect autonomy, secure access to government and private benefits, and ensure long-term care and support for vulnerable individuals. Bridging the Gap: Life Insurance Update Presenters: Explore trends and developments in insurance planning, including new and updated products, changes to regulatory and tax regimes, and changing risk profiles. |
| 2:45 - 3:00pm | Break |
3:00pm - 4:15 pm | With Friends Like These: Cross-border Planning in a Changing World Presenters: As global alliances evolve and tax regimes shift, cross-border planning has never been more complex - or more critical. This session explores recent developments affecting Canadians with U.S. or other international ties, as well as non-Canadians seeking to build ties in Canada. |
| 4:15 - 4:30pm | Closing |
Yogesh Bhathella, CPA, CFP, TEP. Yogesh is a Partner at Doane Grant Thornton LLP. He provides tax, estate and business succession planning advice to family-held businesses across various industries.
He brings in-depth knowledge in advising private businesses and high net worth families on a wide range of taxation and business matters. This includes wealth preservation, business reorganization, gift and inheritance tax planning, and trust and estate tax services, as well as advice related to acquisitions or divestitures.
Andrea Frisby, LLB, TEP. Andrea is a Partner at Farris LLP. She focuses her practice on assisting clients with sophisticated estate and trust planning and administration.
She provides succession planning advice and works with clients to craft trust documents, wills and testamentary instruments, powers of attorney and representation agreements which respond to their specific needs. Andrea also provides services to executors and trustees.
Ryan Gill, CPA, CA. Ryan is a Partner with KPMG, in their Vancouver Private Client-Cross Border Tax practice. He serves cross-border private clients with a focus on high-net-worth individuals and families, and family offices. Ryan is also a CPA in the state of Washington.
An expert in project management, John bridges the gap between innovation, execution and productivity.
Ryan practices in the area of tax planning and compliance for individuals, estates and trusts in a Canadian and US cross-border context. He advises individuals on both sides of the border on tax matters related to their residence, compensation including equity compensation, investments including real estate, retirement plans, estates, trusts, gifts and expatriation. He has experience in cross-border reorganizations and post-mortem planning involving US citizens and residents. He is also involved in the preparation of Canadian and US tax returns for individuals, estates, and trusts.
Sarah King, PFP. Sarah is a Senior Estate & Insurance Advisor with BMO Private Wealth. With over 18 years of experience in the Wealth Management industry, Sarah believes in the fostering of long-term client relationships and works closely with Advisors and their clients to provide strategies to meet their specific goals.
Her solutions focus on minimizing the client’s risk, protecting their assets, and growing their estate. She specializes in Life Insurance, Critical Illness, Disability, and Long-Term Care advice and guidance.
Tony Lee, CPA, CA, TEP, LLM (Tax). Tony Lee is the Assistant Vice President of Tax, Retirement, and Estate Planning for the Western Region of Canada for Manulife. As a member of the Manulife Team, Tony works closely with Manulife insurance advisors to support their high-net-worth clients to deliver integrated insurance and tax planning solutions.
Tony joined Manulife Financial in 2022 after spending over 15 years in public practice where he specialized in tax and business succession planning for high-net-worth clients.
St.John McCloskey, JD, LLM. St.John is an Associate with Clark Wilson LLP. He holds a Master of Laws in Taxation and has experience in various aspects of tax and administrative law.
His practice includes representing clients in tax disputes and advising on a variety of tax matters including income tax, GST, PST, and various land taxes. St.John regularly advises clients on business succession matters including establishing employee ownership trusts and transitioning ownership to them.
Kirk O’Brien, CPA, CFP, TEP, FEA. Kirk is Director, Wealth and Tax Planning with BMO Wealth Management. He advises ultra-high net worth clients, families and business owners on comprehensive wealth planning, including family wealth preservation, business succession, tax, trust & estate, philanthropic and cross-border planning.
Drawing on over 35 years experience, Kirk helps clients articulate objectives for their wealth. He focuses on discovery to create value by helping identify issues and narrow scope on customized planning solutions.
Cheyenne Reese, JD, LLM, TEP. Cheyenne is a Principal with Legacy Tax & Trust Lawyers. She assists clients with tax, estate and trust planning.
Cheyenne received her J.D. from the University of Victoria in 2005 and her Master of Law Degree in International Taxation from New York University in 2006. As a result, a major part of her practice is related to cross border U.S. – Canada transactions and estate planning, including estate, gift, and generation skipping tax issues. In addition, Cheyenne advises U.S. citizens and green card holders regarding U.S. tax compliance and the U.S. expatriation tax rules. Cheyenne was called to the British Columbia Bar in 2007 and has been at Legacy Tax + Trust Lawyers since that time.
Amanda Stacey, JD, TEP. Amanda is a Partner at Miller Thomson LLP. She specializes in estate planning, tax, and charity and not-for-profit law.
With a deep understanding of complex estate planning, Amanda provides counsel on family business succession planning, estate planning and administration, including drafting wills, trusts, and powers of attorney, as well as advising executors and trustees on complex estate and trust administration. Amanda also provides advice on cross-border matters, including planning for non-residents of Canada who own Canadian property, advising multinational families with ties to Canada, and assisting foreign executors and trustees with Canadian estate and succession matters.
Sadie Wetzel, LLB, TEP. Sadie is Counsel with DLA Piper LLP. She practises in the areas of Wills, Estates, Trusts and Adult Guardianship.
She advises on all aspects of estate planning, trusts and adult guardianship and regularly prepares Wills, powers of attorney, representation agreements and various types of trusts. Her advice is sought by individuals who want a comprehensive estate plan and by both trustees and beneficiaries of trusts regarding the proper administration of trusts (including trusts for individuals receiving provincial disability benefits).
Geoffrey White, KC, TEP. Geoff practices through Geoffrey W. White Law Corporation in Kelowna and as Counsel with Clark Wilson LLP in Vancouver. He advises clients in Will, Estate and Trust matters.
Geoff is an editor of B.C.’s Probate & Estate Administration Practice Manual, which is acknowledged as the primary source for estate matters in the province. He has litigated estate and trust matters at all levels of court including the BC Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada. These matters include: discretionary trusts, multiple wills, removal of an executor, and international conflict of laws.
Sindy Wong, CPA. Sindy is a Tax Partner with Smythe LLP and is the leader of the firm’s Canadian Tax practice group. She works primarily with privately held businesses, individuals, and estates and trusts.
Sindy has spoken at multiple conferences including the Canadian Tax Foundation’s 76th Annual Tax Conference – Implications of Capital Gains Changes (2024), STEP Canada – Tax Updates (2024), Pacific Business & Law Institute – Using Trusts Effectively: A Cast Study (2020), Allinial Global’s Canadian Tax Interest Group – Corporate Attribution Rules (2020). She has also published several articles on tax and estate planning including “Estate Planning: Where are we now?”, “Section 84.1 – The Trap That Commonly Trips” and “Estate Planning – What You Don’t Know Could Hurt the Next Generation”. Sindy obtained her CPA designation in 2003 and before joining Smythe, she practiced at a national firm.
Ian Worland, LLB, TEP. Ian is a Principal at Legacy Tax & Trust Lawyers. Ian regularly advises clients in personal and corporate tax planning, corporate reorganizations, estate planning, charitable gift planning and international tax and trust planning.
This work also includes advising clients on tax issues arising in connection with the acquisition or sale of a business, divorce, separation, and variations of trusts and wills. Ian has also represented clients in disputes with the Canada Revenue Agency and the Ministry of Provincial Revenue (B.C.) and has appeared on behalf of clients in courts of all levels.