by admin | Apr 27, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law, Employment Law
Until recently it has remained unclear whether one could sue for the tort of harassment in Ontario. However, on February 28, 2017, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (the “Court”) released its decision in Merrifield v The Attorney General (“Merrifield”), which held that an employee can successfully sue their employer for harassment, provided that the aggrieved employee satisfies a four part test. In Merrifield, not only did the plaintiff, Mr. Merrifield, sue his employer (the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or the “RCMP”) for harassment, but he also sued for intentional infliction of mental suffering. Interestingly, in his harassment claim, Mr. Merrifield did not to allege harassment under any of the enumerated grounds in s. 5(2) of the Ontario Human Rights Code (i.e., race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status, or disability). One of the defendant’s positions was that no such right of action was recognized at law. The Court, in allowing the claim, agreed with Mr. Merrifield’s position that a right of action for harassment should be recognized, and awarded him a judgment of $100,000 for general damages as a result of the harassment so found.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 402.
by admin | Apr 27, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law, Counter Terrorism Law
Impacts of the War on Terror on Canadian and International NGOs and Strategies for Moving Forward
On March 27th, 2017, the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group (“ICLMG”), a national coalition of Canadian civil society organizations, released “Civil Liberties, National Security & International Solidarity: How the “war on terror” affects international co-operation”. The article describes ICLMG’s “cause [for] defending rights and freedoms in Canada and internationally from the impact of the war on terror,” and explains how Canadian and international NGOs are impacted by the “war on terror,” particularly by the current state of national security and use of anti-terrorism regimes. The “war on terror”, according to ICLMG, has caused a “widespread erosion of civil liberties and human rights” and is significantly impacting the Canadian international NGO movement by threatening the fundamental principles of “peace, justice and good governance.”
In particular, the article lists some of the impacts of the “war on terror” on Canadian NGO counterparts abroad, including the requirement for some recipient countries to adopt and comply with various anti-terrorism laws in order to receive official development assistance; various restrictions on activities and access to international funding; anti-terrorism legislation that is so broad it threatens criminalization of persons wishing to express dissent or alternative opinions on social and economic development; and disrupted local and international capacity to provide assistance. Additionally, the article outlines impacts of the “war on terror” on Canadians and Canadian NGOs operating locally, including constraints from the Canadian government; border and visa restrictions, financial controls and tracking; and new legislation with respect to information sharing, such as Bill C-51.
ICLMG states that in light of these risks, new strategies, alliances and allocation of resources are required by local and international NGOs in order to move forward with the protection of fundamental human rights. In this regard, ICLMG suggests a number of steps organizations can take, and that ICLMG will assist with, including educating NGO staff, engaging in frank discussions with counterparts, and adapting policies, amongst others, which ICLMG states would best be accomplished through “coalition work and taking advantage of shared knowledge and skills.”
While ICLMG’s article provides an excellent overview of some of the impacts that local and international NGOs face as a result of the “war on terror”, as well as some helpful steps in moving forward, another helpful resource to refer to is the Canadian Bar Association’s (“CBA”) recent submission in December 2016 to the federal government on National Security and Housing, in which CBA made 23 recommendations for changes to the existing national security legislation, including amendments to Bill C-51, the Security of Canada Information Sharing Act, the Charities Registration (Security Information) Act, and provisions of the Criminal Code, as well as policy and operational changes for agencies involved in national security. Further information on CBA’s submission can be found here.
by Dev User | Mar 30, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law, Faith-Based Organizations
– Patients First Act Becomes Law in Ontario
– CRA News
– Federal Budget 2017: Impact on Charities and Not-For-Profits
– Supreme Court of Canada Grants Leave to Appeal in Trinity Western University Cases
– Church Successfully Defends Personal Injury Lawsuit from Volunteer
– Court of Appeal Rules Termination Clause Unenforceable
– OPC Publishes Guidance on the Disclosure of Personal Information by Organizations
– Budget Proposal Eliminates Express Consent Required to Deliver T4s Electronically to Active Employees
– Carters is Pleased to Welcome Two New Lawyers
– Ottawa Office Has Moved To New Location
March 2017 Charity & NFP Law Update
by Dev User | Mar 30, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law, Expertise
On December 7, 2016, the Ontario government passed the Patients First Act (“Patients First”), intended to support patient-centred care, promote health system planning and integration, and improve access to high quality health services.
Yet, while the provincial government has promised that Patients First will deliver better care and usher in a new era of health transformation in Ontario, it could also pave the way for new involvement into the governance of health service providers by the province’s Local Health Integration Networks (“LHINs”).
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 401.
by admin | Mar 30, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law
CRA Revised GST/HST Memorandum 14.6 – Trade Unions and Similar Employee Associations
On March 29, 2017, Canada Revenue Agency updated GST/HST Memorandum 14.6 – Trade Unions and Similar Employee Associations. The only major change (other than some reordering of the text) is to paragraph 14 on how a non-profit organization is determined to have been established “primarily for the benefit of organized labour”. Previously the Memorandum said, “[a] non-profit organization is considered to have been established primarily for the benefit of organized labour if it was established primarily to provide some advantage to workers, such as the protection of their rights or the promotion of better work place practices.” Now the Memorandum says the following:
A non-profit organization is considered to have been “established primarily for the benefit of organized labour” if it was established primarily to provide some advantage to organized labour, such as:
- a trade union as defined in section 3 of the Canada Labour Code;
- a trade union as defined in any provincial act that provides for the investigation, conciliation, or settlement of industrial disputes;
- an association of public servants whose primary object is to promote the improvement of the members’ conditions of employment or work; or
- a parity or advisory committee or similar body.
An example has been provided in the Memorandum to aid with understanding the application of this explanation.
by Dev User | Mar 30, 2017 | Charity & Not-for-Profit Law, Expertise
On March 22, 2017, federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau tabled the second budget of the Liberal majority Federal Government (“Budget 2017”). While Budget 2017 again emphasizes the Liberal election platform focusing on economic growth, job creation and supporting a strong middle class, Budget 2017, like Budget 2016, does not include any new tax incentives for the charity and not-for-profit (“NFP”) sector, as has been enjoyed in previous federal budgets.
The significant developments for the charitable and NFP sector in Budget 2017 include several measures intended to protect gifts of ecologically sensitive land under the ecological gifts program, repeal of the “additional” deduction available to corporations that donate medicine to eligible registered charities (although donor corporations will continue to be able to deduct the fair market value of donated medicine), and confirmation that the First-Time Donor’s Super Credit will expire in the year 2017 as planned. Rather than incentives, Budget 2017 focuses on providing funding commitments to certain parts of the charity and NFP sector, including investments in affordable housing, investment in programs to support youth education, and others. As well, Budget 2017 proposes amendments that purport to strengthen Canada’s anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing regime.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 399.
