Sara Nicholson

Associate

• Queen’s Marque
  600-1741 Lower Water Street
  Halifax, N.S.
  B3J 0J2
• +1.902.444.1758
• +1.902.420.1417
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Language(s) spoken: English

Bar Admission(s): Nova Scotia, 2016

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Legal Assistant(s): Holly Bork

Sara’s practice focuses on estate and trust litigation as well as environmental and administrative tribunal matters.   With a sharp legal mind and a compassionate approach, Sara has built a reputation for clear communication, strategic advocacy, and achieving results both in and out of the courtroom. Clients appreciate her ability to simplify legal complexities while fiercely protecting their interests.

Estate & Trust Litigation

In her estate & trust practice, Sara helps clients navigate some of life’s most complex and emotionally charged legal disputes. She represents beneficiaries, executors, trustees, and other parties in a wide range of estate conflicts, including:

• Will Challenges: Contesting or defending the validity of a will based on undue influence, incapacity, improper execution or fraud.
• Estate Trustee Disputes: Representing clients in conflicts involving executors, administrators, or personal representatives.
• Testators’ Family Maintenance Act: Advocating for or defending against a claim for “proper maintenance and support” of a family member when the will has not done so.
• Power of Attorney Disputes: Addressing misuse, validity, or overreach in substitute decision-making.
• Passing of Accounts: Assisting with court oversight of estate or trust finances.
• Unjust Enrichment & Resulting Trusts: Resolving disputes where informal arrangements led to inequitable outcomes.
• Adult Capacity and Decision-Making Act: Advocating for or defending against the appointment of a person as representative of a person who lacks capacity and does not have a power of attorney or personal directive.

Administrative Tribunal Litigation

In her administrative law practice, Sara represents individuals, developers, renewable energy companies, and aquaculture companies before the Utility and Review Board (now the Nova Scotia Energy Board) on land use planning and development matters as well as the Aquaculture Review Board on adjudicative hearings for aquaculture lease and license applications.

Her practice also includes advising clients with respect to First Nations consultation and mutual benefits agreements.

Sara has appeared before the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, Probate Court and Court of Appeal, as well as the Nova Scotia Energy Board (previously the Utility and Review Board) and the Nova Scotia Aquaculture Review Board.  Select reported decisions include:

• Backman v Attis, 2024 NSSC 229 – Counsel for Estate Trustee in successfully obtaining summary judgment against deceased common law spouse who refused to vacate multi-million dollar ocean front matrimonial property.

• Folly Lake-Wentworth Valley v NS Minister of Environment, 2024 NSSC 27 – Counsel for a renewable energy partnership in a judicial review and successfully represented their interests in a judicial review of the Minister’s decision to approve the environmental assessment for their proposed wind farm.
• Curry v Curry, 2023 NSSC 401,2023 NSSC 402 – Representation of three of seven siblings in five separate pieces of litigation regarding the affairs and estates of their deceased parents. Contested matters have included guardianship, passing of accounts, disposition of cremated ashes, variation of trusts, matrimonial property claims and negligence claims against former lawyers.
• Tawil (Re), 2022 NSUARB 95 – Counsel for an individual successfully appealing municipal council’s decision to refuse to rezone property for the development of a multiunit building.
• Kelly Cove Salmon Ltd. AQ#1039 (NSARB-2021-001) – Co-counsel for an aquaculture company on a successful application to amend its marine finfish aquaculture lease.