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Tax advisory
U.S. citizens and Canadian trusts
Trusts are important tools in Canadian tax and estate planning. Discretionary family trusts, in particular, have become common and are continually evolving. Some of the most powerful benefits of these tools include: <ul> <li><strong>Flexibility</strong> – the ability to maintain control of assets while directing income and value as the trustees see fit.</li> <li><strong>Income splitting</strong> – directing income of the trust to lower-income beneficiaries (usually family members) to minimize the overall family tax burden.</li> <li><strong>Capital splitting</strong> – allocating capital gains to beneficiaries, enabling the use of multiple capital gains exemptions.</li> </ul>
Todd King May 29, 2014
Tax advisory
Mitigating U.S. Tax exposure through the Closer Connection Statement
Canadian persons that spend significant time in the United States can become subject to U.S. taxation and reporting requirements unexpectedly, even if they are not earning income from U.S. sources.  Starting June 30th, 2014 a new initiative will begin that is designed to track a Canadian person’s movement across the Canada/U.S. border.  Prior to this new initiative, many Canadian persons felt, perhaps justifiably, that U.S. authorities had no way of actually knowing how many days they were present within their border.
May 29, 2014
Tax advisory
Holding Companies Demystified
As tax professionals, we are often asked by clients to explain the concept and appropriate uses of holding companies. The answer generally is not straightforward; a variety of tax and commercial factors are relevant in any particular case. Though it is beyond the scope of this article to provide a complete list of potential benefits and drawbacks, an introduction to several key issues will be examined.
May 28, 2014
The “Evils” of Alternative Minimum Tax
Selling your farm is supposed to be tax free, right? At least the first $800,000. So why is that not always the case, and what can you do about it?
William Bishop May 20, 2014
Tax advisory
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Canadian business owners can extract tax-free cash from their corporations by using innovative strategies. Explore these tax effective ways to extract cash from your business.
May 15, 2014
Tax advisory
2014 Ontario Budget Commentary - May 1, 2014
The deficit for the 2013-14 fiscal year is projected to be $11.3 billion, which is $400 million less than the amount estimated when the 2013 Budget was tabled. The deficit for the 2014-15 year is projected to be $12.5 billion and the longer-term forecast continues to call for a return to a surplus by 2016-17. Net public debt to GDP is projected to continue to increase until 2015-16, from which time it will to start to decrease.
May 2, 2014
Indirect tax Tax advisory
Voluntary Disclosures
This article provides information about the Voluntary Disclosure Program (VDP) administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). The VDP encourages taxpayers to come forward voluntarily to declare information that may not have been previously reported. It may be used to divulge unreported or underreported financial information. Use of this provision provides defense against penalty and prosecution.
Apr 29, 2014
Indirect tax Tax advisory
FI, LFI, SLFI and SAM: What Do They Mean and What Can They Cause
Revenue is a good thing; we are always looking for ways to increase it. But in the GST/HST world, dividend and interest revenue can reduce income in addition to causing huge compliance costs and issues. This can come as an unwelcome surprise to many taxpayers.
Apr 29, 2014
Advice to Associates About Law Firm Efficiency
I recently delivered a webinar to a group of associates at one of my law firm clients, as part of the firm’s internal CPD and training program. Among the advice I gave the associates was a recommendation to start looking for opportunities to streamline their work, increase their efficiency, and reduce their own “cost of doing business,” in order to make themselves and their practice groups more competitive and effective.
Apr 22, 2014
Seven Keys to Retaining Your Clients
This article could equally well be called "How to prevent your competitors from stealing your clients." It's not that these other lawyers lack ethics, values and courtesy. It's just that as practices diminish, revenues have to be obtained somewhere to support the firm and its employees. The bottom line is that others may have your clients in their crosshairs. So what are you supposed to do about this? Here are seven suggestions:
Apr 22, 2014
Are Law Firms Falling Behind in Diversity? How Can PR Help?
Recently, the American Lawyer magazine and other outlets published a few articles on the number of women, or lack thereof, that Am Law 200 firms have promoted to partner this year. Some of the firms named in those articles offered data to suggest that this year’s partner class was an anomaly. Others acknowledged that the number of women promoted this year is low but cited the various mentorship and sponsorship programs that their firms have to help ensure women are promoted to reach the requisite “years-of-service” commitment for partner consideration.
Apr 22, 2014
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