Philanthropic individuals that own their wealth in a private company may want to set-up a charitable legacy by donating some of their shares or debt to a private foundation. Although this sounds like a great idea, caution needs to be exercised. Donations of private company shares or debt to a…
Charity regulators all have processes for members of the public to make complaints about the charities. These processes reveal as much about the regulator and the underlying laws as they do about charity malfeasance. Charities are generally good actors, but they do sometimes have lapses or get caught in internal,…
This past weekend was the American Thanksgiving. Black Friday sales and shopping and ‘savings’ ( an oxymoron, no?) advertisements were everywhere. Fortunately there is penance to be had with GivingTuesday, which is tomorrow. I can dissuade any guilt by giving to those less fortunate. According to givingtuesday.ca, this is “a…
GoFundMe is arguably the most recognized crowd funding platform used by many who seek to raise funds from the public domain to support a defined goal. Legal issues have been raised surrounding the funds donated through platforms such as GoFundMe, particularly when the funds are used for something other than…
A person’s house is often their most valuable assets – both monetarily and emotionally. As a result, testators tend to put a lot of thought into who, and how, they wish to leave their house. However, as is always the case, best laid plans often go awry. One example of this, explored in the 2022 Court of Appeal of Ontario decision Barsoski Estate v Wesley, is when it is unclear whether the will gifts someone with a life interest in the house or a licence to use the property.
The Seven Faces of Philanthropy: A New Approach to Cultivating Major Donors is an iconic American fundraising book published in 1994. In it authors Russ Allen Prince and Karen Maru File neatly categorize charitable profiles. While written for a fundraising audience, the book is a helpful reminder that charitable…
Charitable giving is often an important goal of a client’s planning. As the title of this blog suggests, there are many ways to achieve this objective. What follows is a general overview of on of the options available for charitable giving- namely the establishment of a private foundation- and addresses…
Charitable purpose trusts are given special status in the law. While most other types of trusts must have a clear end date, charitable purpose trusts may live forever. All other types of trusts have to have specific and defined beneficiaries, yet charitable purpose trusts may exist in order to further…
Today’s blog has been written by Jessica J. Butler, Law Clerk at Fasken LLP Betty Marion White was born on January 17, 1922 and passed away at her home on December 31, 2021 – just 17 days shy of her 100th birthday. “I feel like crawling under the covers and eating…
A donor-advised fund is established when a donor makes a contribution to a foundation or financial institution and that fund operates much like a trust fund in that the donor (like a settlor) does not retain legal ownership over any property they place in the fund. However, the foundation or financial institution administering the property “provides administrative and investment assistance to the donor and gives the donor advisory privileges about how it should deal with the donated property.”
