Wealth Advice for Women
Through Divorce, Widowhood, and Inheritance
There are moments in life when a woman can suddenly find herself responsible for significant financial decisions, often at exactly the point when she has the least time, the least energy, and the least support to navigate them. The end of a marriage. The death of a spouse or parent. Receiving an inheritance.
These transitions can bring a new level of financial complexity, even for highly successful, financially capable women. RRSP equalization, pension valuation, beneficiary designations, tax considerations, probate timelines, important decisions that need to be made while life itself is changing.
That is where good advice can make a meaningful difference. My practice is built around helping women understand their options, organize the moving pieces and make confident decisions about what comes next.
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Why This Practice Exists
Most financial advice is still built around the idea of one household, one primary decision-maker, and the assumption that person will continue making the decisions indefinitely. Life doesn’t always work that way. When a marriage ends, or when a spouse or parent dies, financial responsibility can shift quickly and unexpectedly. Even highly successful, financially capable women can suddenly find themselves navigating a new set of financial decisions, often while managing everything else that comes with a major life transition.
I’ve watched this happen to people I care about. It’s part of why I do this work the way I do. Before joining CIBC Wood Gundy, I spent almost 15 years inside CIBC Asset Management, working alongside the institutional strategists who build the funds on our shelf. That experience gave me a disciplined, evidence-based way of thinking about money. What I do with that discipline now is narrower and more personal: I bring it to the moments when the financial stakes, deadlines and
emotional weight are all high at once, and where having someone bring structure and clarity to the process can make a meaningful difference.
Where I Focus My Practice
Divorce & Separation - Making sure the financial settlement actually holds up once it becomes real: equalizing property,
properly valuing and dividing a pension, and rebuilding your finances as your own household, on your own terms.
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Widowhood & Inheritance - Sorting out what genuinely needs your attention now from what can wait, and working through probate, account transfers and beneficiary changes without being rushed into decisions before you’re ready.
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How I Work
Divorce, separation, widowhood and inheritance can require important financial decisions at a time when life itself is already demanding enough. There may be anger,
sadness, grief, uncertainty or simply too much to process at once. That doesn’t mean judgment is compromised. It means the circumstances are demanding.
My process is designed to bring structure and perspective when those circumstances make it harder to see the full picture.
When emotions run high, it’s natural for decision-making to be influenced by what feels most immediate. You might focus on a number because it feels fair, delay a decision because you need more time, or hold onto an asset because of what it represents rather than what it means financially. These are human responses. A calm,
disciplined process can help create the space to separate what you feel from what you need to decide.
Here’s how I work:
• We slow down the big decisions. Not every decision needs to be made immediately. Whenever possible, I create time to consider the options, understand the implications and make a decision with a clear head. Built-in time to think is part of the process, not a delay.
• We separate the emotional question from the financial one. “Should I keep the house?” and “Can I afford to keep the house?” are two very different questions. I help keep those questions separate so you can consider both clearly.
• We put structure around the decisions. Wherever possible, we establish a plan, checklist or decision framework before the pressure is on. That gives you something objective to come back to when circumstances become overwhelming.
• Every recommendation is grounded in evidence. My recommendations are based on research, data and a disciplined investment process, not personal opinion. And if you want to understand the research behind a recommendation, I’ll show it to you.
For me, the goal isn't to make decisions for you. It's to create the structure and clarity that allow you to make them with confidence, especially when life feels anything but clear.
