Malcolm Burrows – Page 12 – All About Estates

Loosening Standards for Charitable Property

Malcolm Burrows • October 22, 2020 • 0 Comments

A crisis may change long-held views. In reaction to the devastating economic effect of COVID-19 a couple of regulators have loosened their rules related to two different types of charitable property. Will these changes be temporary or will they lead to long-term change? And what effect does it have on estate donations? Ontario The first announcement was from Ontario. In late March, the Public Guardian and Trustee (PGT) released temporary….

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Charitable Giving, Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Outdated Donation Clause

Malcolm Burrows • September 17, 2020 • 10 Comments

Legal precedents are invaluable – except, that is, when they are wrong or out of date. Recently a Scotiatrust colleague contacted me about a clause in a client’s will that was intended to create an endowment fund at a registered charity. The clause imposed a 10-year capital hold on the donation. He asked, “is this clause still necessary?” The short answer is “no”. The longer answer is “this clause was….

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Uncategorized

The Charity Capacity Gap

Malcolm Burrows • August 20, 2020 • 1 Comment

Canada’s 85,896 registered charities have wide-ranging capacity, but these variations are often underappreciated. Estate donors – and their professional advisors – often focus on cause and tax status, but ignore organizational health indicators like history, funding, staffing, and governance. What should estate donors look for in a charity? Although all registered charities can issue donation tax receipts, not all charities can handle significant estate donations or receive more complex assets. ….

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Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Foundation v. Charitable Organization

Malcolm Burrows • July 23, 2020 • 0 Comments

[caption id="attachment_13341" align="aligncenter" width="766"] We Charity founders Craig and Marc Kielburger (Photo: Getty)[/caption] The WE Charity scandal has been fascinating to charity watchers. On July 22, it was revealed that the Canadian Government contracted with the WE Charity Foundation for the Canada Student Service Grant (CSSG) program, not the WE Charity as previously reported. Parallel public foundations often co-exist with operating charities (charitable organizations), but the two-charity structure was confusing,….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Unrestricted Giving – In Life and Estates

Malcolm Burrows • June 25, 2020 • 1 Comment

An “ah ha” of COVID-19 is the importance of unrestricted giving to charity. Donors, foundations and charities are realizing that excess conditions may hinders responses to urgent social needs. Will this insight last beyond the pandemic? And does it apply to estate donations? Trust-Based Philanthropy First a bit of context. In the charity world, particularly among granting foundations, there is a growing movement called “trust-based philanthropy”. The tenets of this….

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Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving

Should Foundations Give More?

Malcolm Burrows • May 21, 2020 • 0 Comments

Charitable foundations are grappling with their response to COVID-19. A Canadian initiative, Give5.ca, is advocating for increased granting through a time limited pledge in 2020. Simply, the ask is for foundations to pledge to grant at least of five percent of their assets to registered charities in 2020. That’s it. There are no restrictions related to cause or type of charity. Give5 is a movement initiated by a broad coalition….

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Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized