“The calculation of net family property under the FLA excludes certain assets and properties, including inheritances received after the date of marriage.
Section 4(3) of the FLA provides that the onus of proving an exclusion is on the person claiming it. When excluded property changes form, the party seeking to establish exclusion must demonstrate that the new property originated in the excluded property, and that the claimant maintained ownership of the property: see e.g. Belgiorgio v. Belgiorgio (2000), 1994 CanLII 17076 (MB QB), 10 R.F.L. (4th) 239 (Ont. S.C.), aff’d (2001) 2001 CanLII 32756 (ON CA), 23 R.F.L. (5th) 74 (Ont. C.A.).
As the Court stated in Oliver v. Oliver, 2012 ONSC 718, at para. 96, the standard for proving tracing of inherited funds is a “common sense” approach to determine if there is a sufficient link between funds for which an exclusion is sought to the inheritance.”