Articles 2025

Read a brief profile of Melissa Babel, Vice-Chair of the OBA Citizenship and Immigration Section Executive.

In Kufsky v. The Queen, the Tax Court of Canada upheld a section 160 tax assessment of a shareholder who received a dividend from a non-arm’s length corporation. This article provides an overview of the case’s key facts and the Court’s decision.

In a recent decision, the SCC in R v Resolute Forest Products Canada Inc found that an indemnity against pollution claims granted by Ontario did not cover a regulatory order to remediate contamination. The SCC found that the indemnity did not cover first-party regulatory claims such as an order to prevent discharges. The decision highlights the importance of delineating the sources of contamination and conditions of a business’ property before drafting an indemnity for environmental claims.

There were three civil decisions released by the Court of Appeal this week. Topics covered included the apportionment of costs following settlement of an MVA case, the admissibility of documents in a personal injury case, and Anti-SLAPP.

In Weld v Ottawa Public Library, 2019 ONSC 5358, the Ontario Divisional Court (the “Court”) found that a decision by a Public Library to terminate a room rental agreement was not subject to judicial review as it was not made in a public capacity.

Following are our summaries of the civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario released during the week of December 23.

On November 28, 2019, the OBA's Aboriginal Law and Child and Youth Law Sections hosted a program titled: “Legislative Spotlight: Bill C-92 and Its Impact On Your Practice”. This timely program was intended to provide a space for interdisciplinary discussion on the impacts of the implementation of the new federal Indigenous child welfare legislation, Bill C-92: An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, which comes into force January 1, 2020.

In several common scenarios, an estate trustee may have to post a bond before the court will grant probate. Estate trustees routinely ask the court to waive the bond requirement, but the application process is more rigorous than many estates practitioners appreciate. Don't have your client's application needlessly rejected. This article, Part 1 of a two-part series, highlights common mistakes and oversights. Part 2 will explain how to obtain a bond, if it becomes necessary.