Aug 2018 Charity & NFP Law update
On July 16, 2018, in a decision, Canada Without Poverty v AG Canada, (“CWP”) that impacts all Canadian registered charities, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice struck down the provisions of the Income Tax Act (“ITA”) restricting the amount of non-partisan political activities that registered charities may undertake on the grounds that the provisions infringed the charity’s right to freedom of expression guaranteed under section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (“Charter”).
The Government has appealed the decision, citing errors of law. Irrespective of the outcome of the appeal, the decision will have a significant impact on the public advocacy of charities for changes in law and policy because the Government has indicated in a joint statement by the Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Finance on August 15, 2018 that the appeal will “not change the policy decision the Government intends to take with respect to the removal of quantitative limits on political activities.”
Although a full review of the court’s Charter analysis is beyond the scope of this Charity & NFP Law Bulletin, what follows is a brief summary of the court’s findings in the CWP decision, as well as the Government’s undertaking to amend the legislation and policy on political activities.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 425.