Articles 2020

This update features a round-up of the important developments in the Ontario energy sector between January and March (and the first days of April). The author has scoured the regulatory landscape so that you can stay informed and ahead of the curve in this rapidly changing environment.

This article summarizes Curtis v. Medcan Health Management Inc. 2022 ONSC 5176, in which the Ontario Superior Court of Justice held that class actions are preferable to ESA claims for employment cases.

In its recent decision, Skymark Finance Corporation v Ontario, 2023 ONCA 234 , the Ontario Court of Appeal took the opportunity to comment on the importance of immediate disclosure of settlement minutes to other parties in an action and to clarify the meaning of the phrase “to change the entirety of the litigation landscape."

Federal Court confirms CRA can control its own processes in relation to penalty and interest relief at the objection stage.

Expert witnesses play an important, and often decisive, role in litigation. Tax disputes are no different, as experts regularly testify on matters such as those involving asset valuations, transfer pricing or scientific research and experimental development. It is a truism that the first obligation of the expert is to the court to which the expert is called to assist and not to the party calling the expert.

The tax status of a particular supply usually relies on its categorization within the bracket of supplies, either taxable, zero-rated or exempt, under the Excise Tax Act. In the case of transactions involving various similar elements, the fundamental issue becomes determining whether it is a single supply or a multiple supply. As transactions in the modern world consist of multiple layers, the distinction is crucial and, more often, complicated.

A recent decision by the Tax Court of Canada highlights the importance of tenants verifying the residency status of their landlords and complying with any obligations to withhold tax under Part XIII of the Income Tax Act.

A summary of Ontario site alteration by-laws, including their breadth and their limitations. The discussion of the limits considers, in particular, the coming into force of Ontario's On-site and Excess Soil Management Regulation (O Reg 406/19).