Malcolm Burrows

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Malcolm is a philanthropic advisor with over 30 years of experience. He is head, philanthropic advisory services at Scotia Wealth Management and founder of Aqueduct Foundation. Views are his own. malcolm.burrows@scotiawealth.com

Donation Tax Credit Mismatch

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It is a truism that Canadians who donate enough to charity at death can eliminate tax. This outcome is due to the 100% contribution limit for gifts by will and direct designation gift of registered funds and life insurance.  Since 2015, however, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Yukon have increased the top marginal tax rate, but not top donation tax credit rates.  In many cases estates with large donations to….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Endowments and Perpetuity

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“Is perpetuity 21 years?” asked a charity colleague.  “No, it’s forever, until the end of time, or as long as we collectively exist,” I answered.  Despite my pedantic response, the question is a good one because it underscores the inherent meaninglessness of the phrase “in perpetuity” in relation to charitable endowments. My colleague’s charity was reviewing its endowment policy and having an internal debate about the term of funds.  One opinion….

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Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Does Donor Recognition Create Obligations?

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Is a donor obliged to provide ongoing support to a charity after a building or facility is named in their honour?  The legal answer is “no”.  Naming, however, may stir up complex feelings of ownership and hope, which often lead to misunderstandings — even after the donor is dead. Ownership Donors and their descendants understandably feel ownership for a facility in the family name.  The place, for example, may define….

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

Approving Donor Recognition

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Charities like to name things after donors.  Simply, big gifts mean more prominent “naming opportunities”.  Ontario’s Minister of Health recently issued a directive to hospitals stipulating that they can’t rename existing hospitals in recognition of donations.  Is “naming” a risk for major donors?  What are the estate planning implications? Ontario’s New Rules First, let’s look at Minister Eric Hoskin’s directive.   It says the new hospital name “must not include the….

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Uncategorized

Estate Donations = Faster Distributions

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[caption id="attachment_4590" align="alignright" width="761"] Faster Distributions of Estate Donations[/caption] Matt Johnston, my tax colleague at Scotiatrust, says the 12-month tax filing deadline is upon us. The initial round of major distributions to charities will occur in January 2017 under the “estate donation” rules introduced in 2016. As mentioned in my previous blog, executors and their advisors are discovering that new rules create new procedures. And the new procedures may lead….

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Estate Administration, Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving

The Estate Donation Loop

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It is one year after the new estate donation rules were introduced and the practical implementations are beginning to emerge. With the post-2016 rules, a twist arises when the residue of the estate is split between charity and individual beneficiaries. This scenario creates a gift that keeps giving. A gift by will, which is a type of estate donation, is now a gift of the estate. Legally the gift occurs….

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Estate Administration, Estate Donations, Estate Planning
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