Government announces greater flexibility and extension of Canada Emergency Business Account
Provided by the Department of Finance Canada, current as of August 31, 2020
Legislation Update
August 2020 Charity & NFP Law Update
Ontario Bill 195, Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020
Ontario’s new Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020 (“ROA-2020”) came into force by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council on July 24, 2020. With the ROA-2020’s coming into force, the COVID-19 declared emergency under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (“Emergency Act”) is terminated and Ontario Regulation 50/20 Declaration of Emergency is revoked. ROA-2020 continues orders made under sections 7.0.2 and 7.1 of the Emergency Act in relation to COVID-19. On August 20, 2020, continued orders under the ROA-2020 were extended until September 22, 2020, with two exceptions: the Education Sector order was extended only until August 31, 2020 and the Limitation Periods order will end on September 14, 2020, on which date the suspended time periods will resume running.
At this time, all public health units in the province are in Stage 3 and, pursuant to the continued order in Ontario Regulation 364/20 Rules for Areas in Stage 3, social gatherings for weddings, funerals or religious services, rites or ceremonies are still limited to 50 people if the gathering is held indoors (provided the number of persons occupying any room in the building or structure while attending the gathering do not exceed 30 per cent of the capacity of the particular room), or 100 people if the gathering is held outdoors. Also, all persons attending the gathering must comply with public health guidance on physical distancing.
Individuals who fail to comply with an order under the ROA-2020 face a fine of up to $100,000; directors and officers of corporations face fines up to $500,000 and prison terms up to one year; corporations are liable up to a $10,000,000 fine if convicted of failure to comply with an order. Each day of non-compliance with an order is a separate offence, and courts may increase the maximum fines by an amount equal to the financial benefit that was acquired by or that accrued to the non-compliant person as a result of the commission of the offence.
ROA-2020 also provides relief measures for corporations with regard to the statutory time limits for holding annual general meetings and annual reporting deadlines. For additional information see Corporate Update, above. For further details on the ROA-2020 and the continued orders under the act, see COVID-19 Resource for Charities & NFPs: End of COVID-19 Emergency in Ontario under New Reopening Legislation
Ontario Bill 175, Connecting People to Home and Community Care Act, 2020
On July 8, 2020, Ontario’s Bill 175, Connecting People to Home and Community Care Act, 2020 (“CPHCC-2020”) received Royal Assent. As discussed in the February 2020 Charity & NFP Law Update, CPHCC-2020 amends Ontario’s health system intended to modernize the delivery of home and community care services.
CPHCC-2020 has three schedules. Schedule 1 makes a number of changes to the Connecting Care Act, 2019 (“CCA-2019”), replacing references to “integrated care delivery systems” with “Ontario Health Teams”, which is the terminology used for such groups of health care providers and organizations. CPHCC-2020 also opens the door for Ontario Health to authorize a health service provider or Ontario Health Team to govern the funding and oversight of home and community care services. Other changes include expanded investigative and supervisory powers applying to prescribed home and community care services, new enforcement and penalty provisions, and a complaints and appeals process. The complaints and appeals process also came into force when the CPHCC-2020 received Royal Assent. Schedule 2 of the CPHCC-2020 amends the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care Act to maintain the Minister’s power to enter into agreements with Indigenous organizations to provide for home and community care services for Indigenous communities. This power and right currently exists under the Home Care and Community Services Act, 1994, which Schedule 3 of the CPHCC-2020 repeals as of the date of Royal Assent. Schedule 3 also makes consequential amendments to other healthcare legislation. Except as otherwise noted, most provisions enacted by CPHCC-2020 will come into force at a future date by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.
Archdiocese Found Vicariously Liable in Mount Cashel Sexual Abuse Appeal
August 2020 Charity & NFP Law Update
On July 28, 2020 the Court of Appeal of Newfoundland and Labrador released an important decision in John Doe (G.E.B. #25) v The Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation of St. John’s (the “Appeal Decision”), overturning a trial decision and holding the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation of St. John’s Newfoundland (the “Archdiocese”) vicariously liable for sexual and physical abuse committed by a civilian employee and members of the Christian Brothers Institute Inc. (“Christian Brothers”) against four former residents of the Mount Cashel orphanage in St. John’s in the late 1940s and 1950s.
This Bulletin provides a brief overview of the court’s decision with respect to its findings on the Archdiocese’s vicarious liability. It is an important decision because it is an example of the danger in assuming that an organization has mitigated its liability to the fullest extent possible by simply focusing on its internal policies with respect to the conduct of its employees, members and volunteers. In this regard, many organizations may assume that they are adequately protected because they have taken steps to protect against liability for the direct actions of that organization or its employees. However, this Appeal Decision demonstrates that vicarious liability can be interpreted and applied to find that an organization may become liable for unauthorized acts of employees, volunteers or members of other organizations, particularly when it concerns vulnerable persons, depending on the facts and the relationship between organizations.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Church Law Bulletin No. 58.
Overview of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS)
Overview of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (“CEWS”)
Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 477
The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program (“CEWS”) was first introduced on April 11, 2020, in Bill C-14, COVID-19 Emergency Response Act, No. 2 as a 75% wage subsidy up to a maximum of $847 per week for three 4-week periods starting on March 15, 2020 and ending on June 6, 2020, subject to additional periods ending no later than September 30, 2020 as prescribed. On May 15, 2020, the CEWS was amended by way of regulations to include new eligible entities and to extend the program for another three 4-week periods ending on August 29, 2020. On July 27, 2020, with the Royal Assent of Bill C-20, An Act respecting further COVID-19 measures (“Bill C-20”), the government introduced substantial changes to the scope and eligibility criteria of the CEWS, retroactive to July 5, 2020, and extended the program for another three 4-week periods ending November 21, 2020, with the possibility of an additional 4-week period ending no later than December 31, 2020. This Bulletin provides an up-to-date overview of the CEWS to assist charities and not-for-profits.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 477.