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Greetings!

 

Welcome to the first edition of Charity Law Insights for 2012.  

 

Drache Aptowitzer LLP is proud to announce that Yvonne Chenier has been appointed as a Queen's Counsel in Alberta. This is an honour bestowed by a province upon lawyers who have excelled in their respective fields and have made outstanding contributions to their community. This honour is a testament to Yvonne's expertise in the field of charity law and her tremendous commitment to working with charities.

 

As usual, we are happy to present the latest offerings from Drache Aptowitzer LLP's team. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact any one of us.

 

Happy New Year to all of our readers..

 

 

Yours truly,
Drache Aptowitzer LLP

Cause Related Marketing - Know The Rules By: Yvonne Chenier Q.C.   
 

Yvonne Chenier

A recent article about a United States Attorney General investigation into "pink ribbon" campaigns has made me wonder if and when such an investigation will be launched in Canada. (http://www.venable.com/cause-related-marketing-in-the-crosshairs-what-the-new-york-attorney-generals-breast-cancer-investigation-means-for-nonprofits-and-their-corporate-supporters-11-22-2011/)

 

The article makes reference to a focus on fraudulent charitable activities, something we have heard much about in recent years in Canada, certainly in the area of tax shelter donation schemes. To be prepared for any Canadian investigation in the cause related marketing area, organizations that are engaging in this kind of promotional activity need to be aware of the regulations surrounding this activity in Canada.

 

To see the rest of this article click here:

 

A Primer on the Tax Incentives of Charitable Giving
By: Adam Aptowitzer 
Adam Aptowitzer

The upcoming Parliamentary review of the system for charitable donation incentives is a time to educate not just our Parliamentarians about our tax system, but ourselves and our donors as well. Canada has an extremely generous system which should be appreciated by the sector, but first it must be understood (even by those who are not mathematically inclined).

 

The first thing to realize is that donations by corporations are treated differently than individuals. As we have written before, donations by corporations - whether or not a receipt is issued - result in a deduction from the corporation's income whereas donations by individuals are treated as credits.

 

To read the full article:
The By-law Conundrum
Joel Secter
Not-for-profits and registered charities incorporated federally under Part II of the Canada Corporations Act ("CCA") have until October 17, 2014 to continue under the new Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act ("NFP Act"). Arguably the most challenging aspect of continuance for non-share corporations is going to be reaching agreement among the members on a new general by-law for the corporation.

 

For more information click here:


We have heard from a number of sources that the CRA has started to audit some non-profit golf courses to determine whether they have become taxable because of commercial activity. In one case we know of, the issue was whether green fees paid by non-members threatened the non-profit status. The answer to the question is always fact based but it seems distinctly possible that if non-member green fees are substantial, it can be argued that there is a profit making motive which might cost the golf club its non-profit, tax-exempt status.

 

We recently read a CRA letter which dealt with a different issue but also one where a non-profit might have tax liability for at least a part of its income.

 

To read the full article click here:

  
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