Corporations Canada posted a notice (Public disclosure of corporate information) on January 16, 2016, explaining that information about federal corporations is public information. This includes a corporation’s registered office address and the names and addresses of its directors. It explains that public disclosure applies even after a corporation has been dissolved. As a side comment, those directors who do not wish to have their residential addresses posted on Corporations Canada’s website may use another address (which is not a P.O. box) where legal documents must be accepted by the director or someone on the director’s behalf.
Corporations Canada posted a notice (Extending the time for calling an annual meeting of members) on January 15, 2016, explaining its policy on how corporations under the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act (CNCA) may apply to extend the time for calling an annual meeting of members. Under the CNCA, a corporation has to call an annual general meeting of the members (“AGM”) within 18 months of incorporation and, thereafter, an AGM must be called no later than 15 months after the previous AGM and no later than 6 months after the corporation’s preceding financial year-end. Corporations Canada recognizes that there may be circumstances where it would be detrimental to a corporation to call an AGM within the required time. These corporations may apply to Corporations Canada extending the time for calling the AGM, as long as members will not be prejudiced. However, Corporations Canada cannot exempt a corporation from calling an AGM altogether. Usually, an extension is granted for one year, but there may be situations where a multi-year exemption may be permitted. The policy explains when such an application may be made, what information is to be contained in the application and the factors considered by Corporations Canada in granting the extension.
On January 6, 2016, Corporations Canada posted a further notice announcing that minor format changes have been made for submitting English and French versions of proposed corporate name on a number of the CNCA forms (namely forms 4001. 4004, 4007, 4009, 4011, 4015, 4031 and 4032).