Malcolm Burrows – Page 13 – All About Estates

The Plague and Charitable Bequests

Malcolm Burrows • April 23, 2020 • 6 Comments

[caption id="attachment_12694" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Tabernacle by Orcagna, 1359, Orsanmichelle, Florence[/caption] In 1348 the plague hit Florence – and Europe – hard. Half the population died in this densely populated city of 80,000. One result of this mass die-off was 350,000 florins of bequests to one organization, Orsanmichele, a grain market with a miracle producing Madonna shrine. How much is 350,000 florins? It was equal to the annual budget of the….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Are wills an essential service?

Malcolm Burrows • March 26, 2020 • 4 Comments

Every COVID-19 day we seem to learn a new phrase. Not so long ago we discovered “social distancing”, and this week it is “essential services”. The list of services and businesses that we can’t do without varies by province, but most include financial and professional services, including lawyers. Wills are an essential service and the demand for them is growing. By pointing this out I don’t mean to be alarmist….

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Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Wills

Tax Shelters and Charitable Intent

Malcolm Burrows • February 27, 2020 • 0 Comments

In early February, the Tax Court of Canada put another nail in the coffin of “one of the biggest tax scams in Canadian history.” The case involved the Global Learning Gift Initiative, a charitable tax shelter that attracted 40,000 investors who – through a complex structure with no clear public benefit – made money by giving it away. The disqualified tax benefits from 2004/5 totaled $400 million. The Tax Court,….

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Uncategorized

Charitable Remainder Trusts in Canada

Malcolm Burrows • January 30, 2020 • 3 Comments

The Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) is a gift planning structure that rarely works in Canada. An import from the U.S. – where it is an integral part of the gift and estate tax regime – the CRT in Canada has fewer tax and planning benefits. It’s a foreign plant that doesn’t thrive in the Canadian soil. CRTs in the U.S. Introduced in 1969, U.S. CRTs are a defined structure in….

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

Estate Donations to Government

Malcolm Burrows • December 12, 2019 • 2 Comments

The title of this blog may provoke laughter, or perhaps, just head-shaking disbelief. But estate donations to various levels of government do happen. The trick is to ensure that the donor’s intentions are carried out. The Crown – i.e. federal and provincial governments – and Canadian municipalities are qualified donees under the Income Tax Act. Agents of the Crown are also generally included – for example, government agency or university….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Donations from Spousal and Other Trusts

Malcolm Burrows • November 14, 2019 • 0 Comments

[caption id="attachment_11560" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Operation, Christian Schad, Lenbachhaus, Munich[/caption] To paraphrase the common law, a gift must be “freely given without consideration”. “Consideration” means without expectation of benefit, which eliminates contractual or other binding rights. This concept was addressed by my colleague Darren Lund in a recent All About Estates blog on charitable donations from alter ego and spousal trusts. Tax Credit or Certainty? The issue: how can a testamentary….

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