charities

Charities have Fiduciary Duties as Estate Beneficiaries

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I recently spoke to an estate lawyer who told me she would never recommend certain charities to clients. Why?  Because of the way these charities treated estate trustees. Some charities are unduly litigious, grind on fees, and are obstreperous about releases. It’s not the first time I’ve heard this comment from estate professionals – and some traumatized lay executors and family members. Sympathy for Charities It’s hard to evaluate the….

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Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

One in Ten: Why Bequest Donors Don’t Inform Charities

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One in ten.  That, according to charitable sector studies, is how many estate donors inform the charities in their will of their intentions.  While this ratio varies by charity it underscores a fascinating paradox.  Bequest donors trust charities enough to make them beneficiaries of their estate, but they don’t trust them enough to tell them in advance. The Paradox This paradox is frustrating for charities.  Charities spend a lot of….

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Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Donor Recognition: Servants, Saints and Super Heroes

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In 15th and 16th century Europe donor recognition was negotiable. The biggest donors gave to the church, but the best way to be recognized in a durable way was to underwrite religious art. Albrecht Dürer’s circa 1500 triptych, the Paumgartner Altarpiece, is one of the most arresting examples of the complex dynamic that did, and still does, shape the process of showing gratitude to donors. Donors as Servants The main….

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Charitable Giving, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving

In the Wake of Canada Without Poverty: Next Steps for Charities and Political Activities

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Today’s blog comes to you from Student-at-Law, Jake Woloshyn In the 2018 Ontario Superior Court of Justice case, Canada Without Poverty v AG Canada, 2018 ONSC 4147 (Canada Without Poverty), Morgan J. held that the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) interpretation of the ‘substantially all’ condition in s. 149.1(6.2) of the Income Tax Act (ITA) – an interpretation that requires a charitable organization to use substantially all (no less than 90%)….

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Charitable Giving, In the News

Charities and Political Activities

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  A battle has been waging in Canada since 2012 over “political activities” by registered charities. The previous Federal Government initiated an audit by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) of 60 registered charities, which was discontinued in 2017 by the current government. On July 16, 2018, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice struck down the limitations as unjustifiable restriction of a charity’s freedom of expression. On August 15, the Government of….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving

Form T3010 Registered Charity Information Return and the CRA’s Initiatives

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In order for a charity to maintain its charitable status, the Form T3010 Registered Charity Information Return (“T3010 Information Return”) must be filed each year within 6 months following the end of the charity’s fiscal period. Approximately two years ago, the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) created an infographic to remind charities of their T3010 deadlines. For example, if a charity’s fiscal year end is January 31, the T3010 Information Return….

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Canada Revenue Agency, Tax Issues
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