Articles

One of the more interesting tax developments of 2018 was surely the jurisprudence considering whether a taxpayer has realized a tax benefit, one of three requirements for the application of the general anti-avoidance rule. The existence of a tax benefit had only infrequently been disputed by taxpayers, until several of taxpayers disputed it in 2018.

A recent judgement of the Federal Court highlights the need for taxpayers to consider solicitor-client privilege carefully when creating documents that record uncertain tax positions, and limits the applicability of BP Canada, which held that the Minister of National Revenue was not entitled to have access to Tax Accrual Working Papers without restriction.

In this article, the authors discuss the proposed measures introduced in the 2018 Fall Economic Statement that will allow businesses to accelerate the tax depreciation of certain capital investments.

The courts continue to delineate the scope and operation of rectification following the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Canada (Attorney General) v. Fairmont Hotels Inc., which significantly curtailed the availability of the remedy. This article discusses a recent British Columbia Supreme Court decision in which the Court granted an order to rectify a directors’ resolution declaring a capital dividend, the amount of which had been erroneously inflated.

In this article the author highlights the proposal in the 2018 Federal Budget to increase reporting requirements for trusts and the penalties for failure to comply.

The Tax Court of Canada confirms its willingness to apply the general anti-avoidance rule to surplus stripping transactions which circumvent the application of section 84.1. Benjamin Mann reviews the recent decision in 1245989 Alberta Ltd. v. The Queen.

Proposed amendments to the Excise Tax Act may have a number of implications for investment funds and their managers. Jamie Wilks and Jonathan Bright describe and explain the proposals, while discussing some potentially significant consequences for hedge funds, mutual funds, and similar investment vehicles.

On September 8, 2017, the Department of Finance re-released proposed changes to billed-based accounting for professionals for taxation years beginning after March 21, 2017. The article reviews the proposed amendments and transitional rules.

The Tax Court of Canada recently released a decision in MacDonald v. The Queen, that together with the Court’s decision in George Weston Limited v. The Queen establishes the limits to the spectrum of hedging arrangements. Alexandra Neacsu Monkhouse reviews the decision in MacDonald and discusses how it continues and clarifies the prior jurisprudence on derivatives.