We often hear numerous tax planning terms. In this article we are going to explore and provide answers to some questions regarding tax planning terms and strategies: What is a section 85 roll-over? What is a pipeline transaction? What are share reorganizations? What is a butterfly reorganization? What is a discretionary trust? What are flow-through…
On March 20, 2020, we sent out a client note summarizing some recent announcements made by the Canadian Securities Administrators (the “CSA”) in response to the impact of COVID-19 on market participants. Since that time, the CSA has published (i) more specific guidance relating to annual general securityholder meetings, and (ii) blanket orders which provide…
The OSC formed the Burden Reduction Task Force in November 2018 to enhance competitiveness by saving time and money for capital market participants. In undertaking the work, the OSC set out to achieve the following objectives: Make clear commitments to save market participants time and money Take swift action to identify and address as many…
The OSC Compliance and Registrant Regulation Branch (CRR) published the Summary Report for Dealers, Advisers and Investment Fund Managers (OSC Staff Notice 33-750) on August 8, 2019. The report provides information for exempt market dealers (EMDs), investment fund managers (IFMs), portfolio managers (PMs) and scholarship plan dealers. In Ontario, there are 1,053 firms registered in…
Executive Summary Franchisors, current franchisees and prospective franchisees take notice! There have been a series of changes to the Arthur Wishart Act (Ontario) (the “Act”), Ontario’s franchise legislation. Some of these changes include a broadened definition of “franchise,” which may increase the number of business relationships covered by the Act. As current franchise owners are…
Joint Canadian Securities Administrators/Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada Consultation Paper 21-402: A Summary On March 14, 2019, the Canadian Securities Administrators (“CSA”) and Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (“IIROC”) (both CSA and IIROC collectively “the Regulators”) released a consultation paper discussing potential avenues for regulation of digital and crypto assets platforms (the “Paper”)….
Regulatory Treatment of Initial Coin Offerings: Changing Landscape? In November of 2017, we sent out a note on securities regulators’ approach to initial coin offerings. Since that time, there have been developments and increased scrutiny of block-chain based activities. Facts Regarding Cryptoassets (Cryptocurrencies, Digital Tokens, and Other Blockchain Based Assets) On June 28,2018, the Investor…
Spotlight on Syndicated Mortgages Syndicated mortgages are mortgages in which two or more persons participate, directly or indirectly, as lenders in the debt obligation that is secured by the mortgage. Some of these investments fund commercial and large-scale residential real estate developments in their early stages, and projects include condominium, office and retail complexes. According…
Threats and costs of cyber attacks According to PwC’s Global State of Information Security Survey 2016, which collected responses from more than 10,000 executives from 127 countries, the total number of security incidents detected by respondents in 2015 was up 38% compared to 2014. Previous Global State of Information Security Surveys indicate that security incidents…
Federal Legislation The federal government has proposed cannabis legalisation entitled the Cannabis Act (Bill C-45) which would make it legal to produce, use and sell cannabis by July 2018. Once legalized, cannabis will be a controlled substance subject to rules regarding use and distribution. Implementation has, for the most part, been left to the provinces….
Initial Coin Offerings in the Real World “In June, bitcoin news website Coindesk announced that funds raised through ICOs had overcome VC money as the first source of investment in the blockchain sector in 2017. “Tokens” might sound like Monopoly money, but their impact on the real world is growing by the day… Burke[Jamie] has…
On October 19, 2017, the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) teamed up with Corporate Counsel and Davidson & Company LLP, Blender Media, PI Financial, Mackie Research and other great industry experts to help companies in the cannabis go public. Corporate Counsel discussed novel ways to get listed on the CSE. Presentation: Going Public in the Cannabis Sector…
