It is not common for TheCourt.ca to comment on tax cases. Tax decisions often seem complicated and, unless you are an accountant, a corporate executive or a tax lawyer, they seem removed from your daily life. At face value, the case of Imperial Tobacco Canada Limited v The Queen, 2011 FCA 308 is about whether [...]

Between a Hoof and a Hard Place John Craig is a Toronto lawyer with a successful practice in securities, M&A, and mining law. In his spare time, he breeds and raises horses. Although his income is largely derived from his position as a partner at Cassels Brock, his horse breeding activities have been defined as [...]

Supreme Court Denies Leave in Indian Act GST Exemption Case The Supreme Court will not reconsider whether an Aboriginal’s interest in employment contracts can be considered “property” for the purposes of tax exemption under the Indian Act. In Roger Obonsawin v Her Majesty the Queen, 2010 TCC 222, the Tax Court of Canada determined that [...]

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 [...]

The Supreme Court of Canada has overturned a long line of Federal Court of Appeal cases that had held that registered Indians who earned interest from investments held in financial institutions located on reserve were liable for tax. On the face of it, the decisions of the Federal Court seemed to directly contradict section 87 [...]

The SCC is currently considering the very modern problem of Alexandre Dubé’s capital gains tax woes. As a member of the Obejiwan First Nation (as defined by the Indian Act R.S.C. 1985, c.I-5), living on a reserve in Quebec, many of Mr. Dubé’s sources of income are exempt from federal and provincial taxation schemes. He [...]

Last month, the Federal Court of Appeal, in Antle v. Canada, 2010 FCA 280 [Antle 2010], upheld the Tax Court of Canada decision in Antle v. The Queen, 2009 TCC 465 [Antle 2009], finding that an offshore spousal trust was not valid. Both courts agreed that the primary purpose of the spousal trust was to [...]

As many readers are likely aware, the Minister of National Revenue (the “Minister”) has very significant tax collection powers and employs them often. A quick look at the more recent convictions in the province of Ontario makes that clear. In fact, under certain circumstances, the Minister has the power to garnish a person’s paycheque or [...]

You may have heard of the Merchant Law Group Inc., a full-service firm centered in Saskatchewan. It has been involved in numerous class actions, its most famous involving a claim against the government for the residential school abuses suffered by Canada’s First Nations communities. That action was marred by significant controversy surrounding the way in [...]

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, [...]