Canada Case Law

Canada v. Marine Atlantic

Court

Federal Court of Appeal

The Federal Court of Appeal dismissed the Crown’s appeal: the Tax Court did not err in awarding enhanced costs (60% of Marine Atlantic’s legal fees) because the Crown’s prolonged refusal to accept BC Ferries findings and its last‑minute filing of the Shimizu affidavit constituted conduct that unnecessarily lengthened and increased the cost of the proceeding and justified compensation and deterrence; the Tax Court’s quantum was within its discretion and not unprincipled for lack of comparative citations.

Source excerpt

• Costs awards
• Affidavit evidence
• Trial by ambush
• Contractual agreements to be bound
• Standard of review

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Gouriche c. Le Roi

Court

Tax Court of Canada

Appel fiscal partiellement accueilli : la Cour réduit les revenus imposables non déclarés pour 2013 et 2014, annule la nouvelle cotisation de 2015 et maintient les pénalités ajustées.

• Net worth method
• Reassessment period (s.152(4)(a)(i))
• Penalties (s.163(2))
• Admissibility of foreign sworn declarations (ccq art.2870)
• Net-worth-method
• Reassessment-period

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Lafleur v. Canada (Attorney General)

Court

Federal Court

Judicial review allowed where the Federal Court found the CRA’s taxpayer-relief decision under s. 220(3.1) of the Income Tax Act was unreasonable.

• Taxpayer relief
• Interest waiver
• Charitable donations
• Procedural fairness
• Standard of review
• Taxpayer-relief

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Melflor Investments Ltd. v. Canada (Attorney General)

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court dismissed Melflor Investments Ltd.’s judicial review of a denial of Voluntary Disclosure Program relief, finding the disclosure was not voluntary.

• Voluntary disclosure program
• Income tax act s.220(3.1)
• Vdp voluntariness
• Procedural fairness
• Costs
• Judicial-review

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Terra Firma Development Corporation Limited (Re)

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The BIA's stay on remedies upon filing of a proposal (s.69.1) operates to stay the MGA's 'oldest first' allocation and municipal tax-sale remedies in the proposal context; no constitutional inoperability was found because the BIA's general stay, not paramountcy, resolves the conflict; the six‑year lien expiry in s.133(7) MGA is tolled during the proposal; the stay will not be lifted for West Hants except as to six specified lots for which the trustee consents and which likely lack equity; the proposal is approved as calculated to benefit creditors.

Source excerpt

• Proposal approval
• Stay of proceedings
• Constitutional paramountcy
• Municipal tax lien priority
• Limitation tolling

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LS v Minister of Employment and Social Development

Court

Social Security Tribunal of Canada

The appeal is dismissed because the determinative issue of income was referred to the Tax Court and subsequently withdrawn following an out-of-court settlement that the Minister implemented, and because the Tribunal lacks jurisdiction to order the Minister to forgive overpaid GIS benefits.

Source excerpt

• Overpayment
• Reconsideration
• Referral to tax court
• Debt forgiveness
• Jurisdiction

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Séguin v. Canada (Attorney General)

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court dismissed a judicial review of the Minister’s refusal to grant taxpayer relief for penalties and interest under the Income Tax Act.

• Taxpayer relief
• Waiver of penalties and interest
• Income tax act s.220(3.1)
• Reasonableness review
• Taxpayer-relief
• Waiver-of-penalties-and-interest

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Desmarchais-Min c. Canada (Procureur général)

Court

Federal Court

Contrôle judiciaire d’un refus de recommander une remise de dette liée aux PCRE rejeté; la Cour estime la décision raisonnable et aucune circonstance exceptionnelle n’est démontrée.

• Judicial review
• Reasonableness standard
• Remission of debt under s.23(2) lgfp
• Canada recovery benefits repayment s.8(2)
• Taxation year attribution of benefits
• Judicial-review

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Porisky v. Canada

Court

Federal Court of Appeal

The appellants' activities exhibited objective, business-like profit-making conduct and were properly characterized for tax purposes (including as a partnership); the appellants failed to identify any error of law or palpable and overriding error in the Tax Court's findings, and the Court rejects the appellants' contention that subjective lack of intention to profit, under their reading of Stewart, removes tax liability; therefore the appeal is dismissed.

Source excerpt

• Source of income
• Tax avoidance arguments
• Gst collection obligations
• Characterization of partnership
• Subjective intention vs objective business-like conduct
• Standard of review

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Rajendran v. Canada (Attorney General)

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court dismissed judicial review of CRA decisions denying CRB and CERB benefits, finding the applicant failed to prove the required $5,000 income and received procedurally fair treatment.

• Judicial review
• Eligibility for benefits
• Procedural fairness
• Evidence and proof
• Judicial-review
• Procedural-fairness

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