Executive Summary Companies that grow through leveraged acquisitions, refinancing strategies, or complex financing structures eventually encounter the same sequence: CRA audit, reassessment, and dispu...
In large-corporation CRA disputes, management must make consequential decisions immediately after reassessment while information remains incomplete and positions unsettled. This does not reflect a fai...
In large-corporation CRA disputes, the period immediately following reassessment is defined by unresolved conditions. Information is incomplete. Interpretations remain unsettled. Exposure cannot yet b...
A CRA dispute begins when CRA issues its reassessment. Management’s first test begins when it explains it to directors, shareholders, lenders, investors, or partners. The structure varies. The dynamic...
Key Takeaways CRA’s incentive design produces earlier, larger, and more persistent reassessments. The Large Corporation Rules convert those assertions into temporary capital constraints. For executive...
Executive Abstract A CRA dispute unfolds across multiple institutions with different incentives and objectives. After a reassessment is issued, control over the advice and guidance shapes how the disp...
Peter Aprile, Senior Counsel at Counter LLP, describes three inflection points that define how CRA challenges develop and are resolved. The framework reflects insights drawn from years of representing...
The CRA no longer relies on blunt audit tactics to detect offshore non-compliance. It operates a layered system; data-driven, globally integrated, and increasingly predictive. Most taxpayers facing of...
When CRA issues a Notice of Reassessment (NoR), taxpayers who contest it face a structural choice: remain in CRA’s self-adjudication stage at objection, or transition to the Tax Court’s independent ov...
Cryptocurrencies have redefined wealth creation but also bring unprecedented challenges for tax planning and compliance. As cryptocurrency values soar and governments worldwide heighten scrutiny, Cana...
Key Takeaways Economic substance framed: The FCA upheld a constrained structure because it was positioned around real economic gains, not technical form. Whole-plan control: GAAR outcomes often hinge ...
Executive Summary A recent ruling by the Federal Court of Appeal in Gestion M.-A. Roy Inc. v Canada, 2024 CAF 16, underscores a growing risk in corporate tax planning: life insurance premiums paid by ...
Key Takeaways for Non-Parties Declining involvement is the default, standard, and strategic approach. DoJ and CRA inquiries post-audit do not create a legal obligation to respond. Written communicatio...
Key Points in Glencore The case involves an appeal against a reassessment under the Income Tax Act, where the Minister of National Revenue assessed as income certain fees Falconbridge received due to ...
You increase the odds of getting the desired outcome when you give effective discovery answers. Here are some tips to help you.
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
The Supreme Court of Canada, in Canada (Attorney General) v. Collins Family Trust,1 further clarifies when courts can grant equitable remedies of rectification or rescission.
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
The general trend is that Canada Revenue Agency is disallowing more input tax credits (“ITCs”) for businesses. In addition, the CRA has launched a project to uncover and disallow ITCs they believe rel...
The CRA is imposing more penalties, including foreign reporting penalties. These penalties might, prima facie, look the same, but there are key differences. The first step in overturning these penalti...
Resolving Tax Disputes (3rd edition) studies tax disputes, conflict levels, and basic strategies. It helps accountants to limit early-stage mistakes and reduce liability. One of the chapters in RTD3 i...
*Thomson Reuters regards the authors as individuals with expertise in tax and litigation. Thomson Reuters has published five Practical Insight chapters on different tax controversy topics, which Count...
Thompson Reuters considers the authors “leading tax experts and litigators”. The authors agreed to grant TR partial rights to this work. This article first appeared in TR’s, Practical Insights in May ...
Generally speaking, taxpayers can deduct fees and costs paid to prevent a potential assessment or dispute a reassessment under paragraph 60(o)(i) of the Income Tax Act R.S.C. 1985, c. 1 (the “ITA”). W...
*Thompson Reuters considers the authors “leading tax experts and litigators”. The authors agreed to grant TR partial rights to this work. This article first appeared in TR’s, Practical Insights in May...
Key Takeaways Legal framing decisive: The CRA’s misinterpretation of treaty and domestic provisions collapsed on appeal, shifting control of the dispute to the taxpayer. Facts aren’t final: Even where...
Guest: Peter Aprile
Guest: Mac Killoran
Guest: Mac Killoran
Guest: Peter Aprile
Guest: Peter Aprile
Guest: Peter Aprile
Advocate Daily originally published, “CRA may see influx of tips after Ashley Madison hack”, in September 2015. Relationship strife may not be the only fallout from the recent information hack at the ...
The Supreme Court of Canada's recent ruling that administrative monetary penalties do not offend constitutional rights will likely have a “chilling” effect on tax advisers, Toronto tax litigation lawy...
Advocate Daily originally published, “Passion, talent not enough to prove business activities”, in July 2015. A recent Tax Court of Canada decision that questioned whether a hockey blog is a business ...
In Tax Court of Canada appeals, the pleadings are the most important documents that the parties file. The Appellant (taxpayer) is required to file a Notice of Appeal, and the Respondent Minister of Na...
The Federal Court of Appeal has recently made it clear that the decision in Canada v. Sommerer [2012] FCA 207 is correct and subsection 75(2) of the Income Tax Act does not apply to property sold for ...
A significant costs award and even-handed analysis provided by the Tax Court of Canada in a recent case will serve to remind the government that tax litigation carries financial consequences, Toronto ...
The Tax Court of Canada has ruled the allowable limits provision of the TCC tariff is not definitive and judges have the discretion to exceed amounts set out in it.
A recent Tax Court of Canada decision will hopefully persuade the Minister of National Revenue to reconsider the routine imposition of harsh penalties for failing to report income, Toronto tax litigat...
In a potentially precedent-setting case, the Tax Court of Canada has determined that the often “harsh” penalties imposed on taxpayers who misreport income in two out of four years cannot be imposed if...
Tax disputes with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) present a complex challenge for individuals and businesses alike. Understanding the interplay between audit, objection, appeals, and collections proce...
The Tax Court of Canada in October last year released its reasons for judgment in Brent Kern Family Trust v. Canada [2013] T.C.J. No. 286. The case was the TCC’s first opportunity to review and apply ...
Advocate Daily initially originally published, "Tax court should go further when awarding costs”, in March 2014. Although a recent Tax Court of Canada decision shows a continued trend towards higher c...
The Income Tax Act (“ITA”) provides various tax advantages to corporations that qualify as Canadian-Controlled Private Corporations (“CCPC”).
Late last year, the Tax Court of Canada released its reasons for judgment in Ironside v. Canada [2013] T.C.J. No. 298, and Gouveia v. Canada [2013] T.C.J. No. 353. In Ironside and Gouveia, the Tax Cou...
The Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) announced, and now initiated, its 5th Annual Letter Campaign (the “Campaign”).** The CRA is in the process of sending 33,000 letters to taxpayers that have claimed bu...
Advocate Daily originally published “New CRA tools may mean more tax haven proceedings” in December 2013. Although the Canada Revenue Agency has reportedly struggled to deal with the number of cases i...
Eighteen new words have been added to the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, and Canada’s Taxpayers’ Ombudsman Paul Dube is hoping they will convince hundreds and perhaps even thousands more individuals and bus...
In cases heard under the TCC’s general procedure (as opposed to the informal procedure), the winning party may receive more than the amount of taxes in dispute plus interest—that is, the court may awa...
In its first decision on third party penalties, the Tax Court of Canada has curtailed the power of the Canada Revenue Agency; as expected, the CRA has already decided to appeal.
We have experience representing SR&ED claimants at the objection and appeal stages. At times, we have questioned the CRA’s level of service and processes surrounding SR&ED objections. Today, the CRA p...
Prior to 1999, the Minister of National Revenue and Canada Revenue Agency (hereinafter jointly referred to as the “CRA”) had two legislative tools to severely punish taxpayers, advisors, planners, pro...
The Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) has assessed a number of taxpayers who have participated in the detax schemes. In addition, the CRA has imposed 50% subsection 163(2) gross negligence penalties. We t...
We have published various tax law blog entries related to the Canada Revenue Agency’s audit of restaurants and electronic sales suppression software (commonly referred to as “Zapper” software). The CR...
We have written several postings related to the proposed changes in the Tax Court Act and Tax Court Rules. To review, the proposed changes seek to increase the Tax Court Informal Procedure Limits (i.e...
The Canada Revenue Agency Appeals Branch provided our firm with the following statistics related to the number of tax dispute and tax litigation files along with the rates of settlement, withdrawal an...
The Department of Finance (Finance) has released a document entitled Consultation Regarding the Impact of Contingency Fees on the Effectiveness of the Scientific Research & Experimental Development Ta...
Subparagraph 60(o)(i) of the Income Tax Act (ITA) allows a taxpayer to deduct legal fees paid to contest an assessment of tax, interest or penalties including, but not limited to, fees incurred to pro...
In or about 1995, the “detax” or “untax” movement has been moving through Canada. Since that time, detax organizations have been gaining profit holding seminars that spread the detax philosophy. Gener...
It is trite law that the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has the authority to impose tax penalties for non-compliance with the Income Tax Act (ITA). The Tax Court of Canada (Tax Court) recently released K...
Tucked in with the promise of prosperity, job creation, and fiscal restraint in the federal government’s recent budget was another commitment: to move forward with changes aimed at improving caseload ...
We have discussed the Department of Finance’s (“Department”) proposed changes to the Tax Court of Canada Act. The Department posits that these changes will improve tax disputes between taxpayers and t...
Key Takeaways Expert credibility matters: CRA’s independent, balanced expert persuaded the Court, while the taxpayer’s conflicted expert undermined its case. Evidence must stand on its own: Expert rep...
Subsection 169(1) of the Income Tax Act (the “Act”) provides, in part, that a taxpayer may institute an appeal in the Tax Court of Canada to dispute a (re)assessment or notice of confirmation (jointly...
Section 227.1 of the Income Tax Act and section 323 of the Excise Tax Act provide that the CRA can assess corporate directors personally for a corporation’s failure to remit payroll deductions and GST...
In Bozzer v. Her Majesty the Queen (“Bozzer”), Federal Court of Appeal held that the taxpayer relief provisions contained in the Income Tax Act allow the Minister of National Revenue (“Minister”) and ...
The Minister of Finance, the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General of Canada have invited the public to comment on proposed changes to the Tax Court of Canada’s Rules.
The Financial Post Executive Podcast just posted our interview entitled “The Practical Taxman Cometh”.
The Tax Court’s Bench and Bar Committee and the Canadian Bar Association’s Tax and Charities sections have sponsored a new resolution proposing that the Canadian Bar Association renew its efforts to p...
Stephan Gieselmann, a CRA Assistant Director, created a Facebook page urging the public sector to boycott Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (“CFIB”) members’ businesses reports Ms. Stefani...
The CRA’s Taxpayers’ Ombudsman reported that several taxpayers contacted the Taxpayers’ Ombudsman office complaining the Tax-Free Savings Account (“TFSA”) rules related to withdrawals and over-contrib...
Notices of reassessments issued by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) can have serious financial implications for small businesses. In 2009 and 2010, the CRA audited approximately 380,000 small and mediu...
The Globe and Mail published an informative article on August 2, 2011 explaining the CRA’s new audit program that targets restaurants using software designed to suppress restaurant sales i.e., zapper ...
The Canada Revenue Agency’s Voluntary Disclosure Program (the ‘‘Program’’) encourages taxpayers to voluntarily disclose unreported income. As set out in Information Circular IC00-1R2, a taxpayer who v...
Yesterday’s Ontario Bar Association Tax Law Section Conference was a great opportunity for our firm to discuss the Canada Revenue Agency’s (“CRA”) new Related Party Initiative (“RPI”), which targets h...
The Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) is launching a new project named the Related Parties Initiative (“RPI”) aimed at wealthy individuals and related entities. The CRA intends to initiate the RPI audits ...
Stephen Kaegi and his wife, Elise Dallaire, learned the hard way that music, love and taxes don't always mix well. The Ontario couple have spent two years trying to persuade federal tax officials that...
Six years after the bankruptcy of a car dealership, an Ontario tax collector began pressing its ailing former director for unpaid sales taxes.
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