Only two weeks into the New Year, 2012 is already shaping up to be a watershed year for corporate citizenship in Canada. This week, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice will hear the case of the biggest corporate flameout in Canadian history, starring Nortel Networks Corp [Nortel]. Pre-trial motions started last week in the criminal [...]

When deciding cases relating to tax planning—or the minimization of a taxpayer’s tax burden—judges face the daunting task of reconciling a tension between longstanding common law principles and s.245 of the Income Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c.1,  the General Anti-Avoidance Rule (GAAR). On the one hand, Lord Tomlin’s holding in Duke of Westminster that “every [...]

Much to the disappointment of Canadians, hockey does not really find its way into the news in the middle of summer. However, earlier in July, a decision was handed down by the Ontario Court of Appeal that answers a question of national importance: whose beer advertisements will dominate hockey ads? The lawsuit pit two of [...]

“We trust that AT&T won’t take it too personally,” wrote Chief Justice Roberts of the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) regarding the outcome of a case concerning corporate privacy rights. Flowing from a spate of privacy cases at SCOTUS (most notably, Snyder v. Phelps covered by fellow Contributing Editor, Alysia Lau here and our Amici Curiae [...]

This Valentine’s Day signifies another year of recovery from the Global Financial Crisis (“GFC”) in markets around the world. Although there are some promising economic signs, part of the recovery is much less romantic and more about pointing fingers. There has been a wave of white-collar crime cases directed at those alleged to have acted [...]

The Ontario Court of Appeal released a judgment this past summer with significant importance for those interested in Canadian class action suits.  This decision marks the first time the Ontario Court of Appeal has certified a competition class action, and should be closely followed by franchisors with vertical pricing agreements. As noted by S. Dhawan [...]

In recent weeks, the Federal Court of Appeal has sent two cases back to the Tax Court of Canada for rehearing. In GlaxoSmithKline Inc. v. The Queen, 2010 FCA 201 (discussed here), the Court of Appeal found that Rip C.J. erred by misunderstanding the application s. 69(2) of the Federal Income Tax Act, R.S.C. 1985, [...]

In simple terms, when related corporations trade property, services or intangibles across international borders, the outlay is referred to as the transfer price. Pursuant to s. 69(2) of the Federal Income Tax Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 1 (5th Supp.) (“ITA”), the transfer price must be “reasonable in the circumstances” that would exist if the non-resident [...]

On March 9th, 2010, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in Danso-Coffey v. Ontario, 2010 ONCA 171. The case deals with an individual who is named a director of a corporation without her consent or knowledge. Danso-Coffey was owned and incorporated by Ms. Danso-Coffey’s brother. Without her knowledge, she was named one of [...]

A fundamental tenet of Canadian tax law, as stated in Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Duke of Westminster, [1936] A.C. 1 (H.L.), is that a taxpayer is entitled to make any lawful arrangement that he or she sees fit in order to reduce his or her liability to tax. The General Anti-Avoidance Rule (“GAAR”), at s. [...]