Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Tamra and Christopher. Christopher, it's nice to see you back again and thank you for your analysis.
I'm going to deal with clause 7 of the private member's bill with my questions, but I would like to make a couple of quick opening remarks and observations, if you will, as to where we are at this point and how that might be helpful from some perspective.
There has been some back and forth between words like “incremental” and “piecemeal”. What I find most interesting in terms of where we are at this time is that obviously we would be using the word “incremental” and some other colleagues might be saying “piecemeal”, but what has happened, no matter what label you apply, is that a very serious conversation has developed, which is what was intended by this member of first nations descent, I might add, around a number of issues, particularly with respect to section 42 to section 47, and then I would say, based on your report, section 48, and then subsection 2(1) becomes impacted.
In other words, this may be more than incremental. I think in your recommendations you give us an algorithmic kind of way of, perhaps, approaching it, so that's what my questions will be focused on. But any time you deal with the descent of property, wills, and appeals mechanisms, obviously it raises issues about the distribution of property on intestacy, and I appreciate that additional source of information.
Similarly, with respect to the Indian custom piece of subsection 2(1), Christopher, I think it raises some serious issues. My question is specifically on Indian custom. I would like to know for what specific reasons there would be a lack of a definition in some jurisdictions, if you know any. That may be a very short answer.
Then my questions will deal specifically with your recommendations. You have the removal versus the coming into force. There is an option in between recommendation 1 and 2 to a legislative way to find the best way to reform wills and estates without creating unintended consequences or legal gaps. Do you have a time period, if we went the route of a coming into force, where that would be implicated?
Then further, do you have any recommendations for a new way of administering wills and estates, some early stuff to give us some ideas about where we would do this?
I put the questions out first because I thought you would have no trouble going through that list and expounding on it.