Yat-Sze Lo, CPA, CA, CFP
Vice President and Financial Planning Specialist, Family Office Services, RBC Wealth Management
Coming from one of the major global accounting firms, Yat-Sze brings a broad range of experience to her role as Vice President, Financial Planning Specialist.
In her previous role, she spent many years working with private companies, high-net-worth individuals, trusts, and partnerships. Her work included tax minimization through appropriate tax planning (corporate and personal, including estate planning) as well as corporate restructuring.
Yat-Sze is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). She completed her Bachelor of Commerce at the University of British Columbia and has completed all three levels of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants’ In-Depth Tax Course. She has also completed the Advanced Tax Course for Owner-Managed Businesses.
As a Financial Planning Specialist, Yat-Sze’s role is to work with and support your advisor in preparing and presenting your Compass Financial Plan and to identify and assess any related financial and tax planning concerns you might have.
Michel Bétournay, Pl. Fin.
Vice-président et spécialiste en planification financière, RBC Gestion de patrimoine
Michel Bétournay, planificateur financier, a obtenu un baccalauréat en administration des affaires avec spécialisation en comptabilité de l’École des hautes études commerciales de Montréal (HEC Montréal) en 1991. Il détient en outre, depuis 2002, le titre de planificateur financier décerné par l’Institut québécois de planification financière (IQPF).
Michel travaille au sein du Groupe de la Banque Royale du Canada depuis 1993. Il compte quatorze années d’expérience à titre de planificateur financier, dont douze avec l’équipe de planification financière Compas.
Son rôle est de travailler avec votre conseiller et de l’aider à préparer et à présenter des plans financiers Compas complets.
Simi obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of British Columbia in 2006 and earned her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Calgary in 2009. She was called to the Bar of British Columbia in 2010. Simi completed the three-year CPA Canada In-Depth Tax Course in 2015.
Following her call to the BC Bar, Simi practiced corporate law, estate and trust planning, and real estate law with a small Vancouver law firm before joining the tax group of a medium-sized firm in 2011, where she specialized in personal and corporate taxation matters, estate and trust planning and tax dispute resolution. She continued her practice of tax law and estate planning at the Vancouver office of a large international law firm before joining RBC. Her experience includes working in all areas of individual and corporate tax planning, business succession and reorganization, estate freezes, and trust planning.
Simi is a member of the Canadian Tax Foundation and the Canadian Bar Association (BC Branch) Wills & Trusts and Taxation Sections. She is also an executive member of the BC Women Lawyers Forum and was a member of the organizing committee for the 2015 and 2016 Ovarian Cancer Canada “LOVE HER” gala. Simi is fluent in Punjabi.
Simi would be pleased to assist you in developing strategies to structure your estate plan in an efficient and tax-effective manner.
Sean Murray, M.B.A., CPA, CMA, TEP
Vice-président et spécialist en planification successorale, Services Financiers RBC Gestion de patrimoine inc.
Avant d'entamer sa carrière dans le secteur de l'assurance vie il y a plus de 20 ans, Sean était directeur principal au sein du groupe du droit fiscal d'un cabinet comtable canadien. Possédant de l'expèrinece dans les domains de l'impôt sur le revenu des particuliers, de l'impôt sur les sociétés, de la planification de la relève d'enterprise et des restructurations, Sean propose à ses clients une approche nouvelle de la planification successorale. Sean travaillera en étroite collaboration avec vous et vos conseillers professionnels en vue d'élaborer et de metre en œuvre des stratégies avantageuses sur le plan fiscal pour vous aider à atteindre vos objectifs de gestion de patrimoine.
Comptable professionnel agréé, Sean détient un MBA de la Richard Ivey School of Business de l’Université de Western Ontario. Sean est membre des Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia, et de la Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.
Sara M. Johnson, ESQ, Ph.D., TEP, CFP, LL.M. (US Law), JD
Vice President, High Net Worth Planning Services— International Estate, Art and Digital Legacy Planning, Family Office Services, RBC Wealth Management
Sara specializes in international estate planning, art collection and digital legacy planning for UHNW families in developing their wealth and legacy plans. Her guidance supports clients in their relationships with their external professional advisors, with whom she frequently interacts.
Sara has two decades of professional experience in complex estate and trust administration and planning; business succession; cross-border tax planning (STEP Advanced Certificate in Cross-Border Estates); family governance (STEP Advanced Certificate on family enterprise advising); art collection management and art estates planning (“Art as Global Business” Certificate, the Sotheby’s Institute of Art and European Institute of Sustainability, “Art Disruption,” NFTs and tokenization of Art, legal and tax planning); as well as, Digital Assets Inventory and estate management. She is a graduate of Masters in US Law at George Mason University and was called to the California State Bar in 2021. Sara achieved her Ph.D. in International Management (Behavioural Finance and Law) at the International School of Management in France, as well as completed the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, National Committee on Accreditation at UBC Peter A. Allard School of Law.
Sara is an active member of the following groups and institutions:
American Bar Association (ABA) in Chicago, US
California Lawyers Association CLA Trust and Estate, and IP Chapters in Los Angeles, US
Beverley Hills Bar Association in Los Angeles, US
International Bar Association (IBA) in London, UK; Technology Law Committee, Art, Cultural and Heritage Committee, IP and Entertainment Committee
Fellow of the European Law Institute in Vienna, Austria; Model Rules on Succession of Digital assets SIG; Access to Digital Assets SIG, and Model Rules on Algorithmic Contracts SIG
STEP Canada; the STEP Cross-Border Estates SIG
The Institute of Art and Law in London, UK
Art Lawyers Association (ALA) in London, UK
Professional Advisors to the International Art Market (PAIAM) in New York City, US
Alumnus of the of Harvard Law School, HarvardX, Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society
Third Space Life Charity in the Okanagan
She lectures the fall/winter seminars on International Business Law, Business Succession, Trust, International Arbitration and
M&A at ISEG, MBA course in Paris, France. She is also a visiting lecturer of Blockchain and NFTs at UCLA Law school. Sara is fluent in Italian and English and has working knowledge of French and Spanish.
Sara works closely with your RBC advisor to identify strategies and solutions on structuring your affairs in a manner that addresses your overall wealth planning needs, which you would then discuss and implement with your accountant or lawyer.