I recently delivered a presentation to a number of international development charities in Ottawa entitled “Encouraging Bequests While Avoiding Legal and Ethical Issues”. It covered issues such as the CRA Fundraising Policy and its effect on planned giving and bequests,…
Although charities are greater than 10% of our economy in a federal election the charitable sector gets between 0 and 0.01 of the attention. We spend a lot of time talking about sweaters. In this blog I ask a few…
Here is my updated article on “How Much Should A Canadian Charity Spend on Overhead” Why low overhead may not be a good thing for a charity and what is appropriate? I am occasionally asked ‘what is an appropriate…
On July 2, 2008 the Lobbying Act came into force and many non-profits and charities are completely unaware of its existence or its effect on their activities. Lobbying is defined broadly under s. 7 of the Lobbying Act and includes…
Offshore tax havens are very detrimental to the Canadian tax base and under cut our social programs. However, the effect of offshore tax havens on the developing world is far more devastating. I was reading a very good article by…
Here is a copy of a powerpoint presentation Blumbergs recently delivered to a US 501(c)(3) on Fundraising and Grantmaking from Canada Here is a copy of a powerpoint presentation on Fundraising and Grantmaking from Canada GlobalPhilanthropy.ca was created by Mark…
In April 2008, CRA released a Consultation on proposed policy regarding fundraising by Registered Charities (RC4456-e) (“Fundraising Consultation”). This document is a relatively short six page overview, and CRA has recently provided charities with a more detailed document entitled “Background…
This case dealt with whether the Charities Directorate of CRA requires judicial authorization to request certain information from a registered charity and CRA won the appeal. The CRA note headnote/summary is below. The CRA in Registered Charities Newsletter No. 31…
Here is a copy of a presentation I recently delivered to a number of Canadian charities in Ottawa entitled Legal Issues for Canadian Charities Conducting Foreign Activities and International Development Download Article
Planned Giving in a Global World is my presentation at the CAGP national convention about Planned Giving by Canadian charities for projects outside of Canada. The description of the presentation was “In this session, we will discuss basic information that…
The law firm of Scarfone Hawkins LLP in Hamilton has recently brought a class action lawsuit against a number of parties for their involvement with the Banyan Tree Foundation including the law firm of Fraser Milner Casgrain. It will be…
Here is a copy of my article discussing the Consultation on proposed policy on fundraising by Registered Charities RC4456 Download Article
I often read commentators talking about the ‘increased burden’ placed by Canada Revenue Agency on Canadian charities operating abroad or the ‘increasingly complicated’ administrative rules. I then scratch my head and wonder what increased burden and what increased rules? The…
Here is my article which discusses the Consultation on Proposed Policy on Fundraising by Canadian Registered Charities (RC4456-e). Here is a link to which is the CRA’s “Consultation on proposed policy on fundraising by Registered Charities.” This is a…
Every year the Canadian Council for International Co-operation hosts a discussion forum and this year it was on the Paris Declaration and aid effectiveness. There are some interesting notes on equitable North/South CSO relations at As well Brian…
Imagine has revised its Code of Ethics (or Ethical Fundraising and Financial Accountability Code) and in this article I review the changes and provide a critique of the strengths and weaknesses of the Imagine Canada’s Code of Ethics. Imagine Canada’s…
The CRA recently posted their top ten list of why applications for charitable status will not be successful. It was placed in a Consultation document entitled “Charitable Work and Ethnocultural Groups – Information on registering as a charity “. As…
Many charities involved with international development and humanitarian relief are familiar with CIDA funding, major gifts, and direct mail. Some of these charities may receive in fact the vast majority of their funds from CIDA and other Canadian government sources. …
Here is a copy of my presentation on the legal requirements for Canadian charities operating abroad. The presentation discussed CRA positions and documents, case law, and various other legal, practical and ethical issues that a Canadian charity may face. Download…
Although the law, governance and ethics are closely intertwined there is little written about ethics of Canadian charities operating abroad. Here are some links that may be of assistance to Canadian charities that operate outside of Canada to understand some…
This European Foundation Centre and the Council on Foundations guide on Disaster Grantmaking sets out principles of good disaster management for charities, foundations and corporations. DISASTER GRANTMAKING: A Practical Guide for Foundations and Corporations The Report of a Joint Working…
News release CRA Issues Notice of Suspension to International Charity Association Network Ottawa, Ontario, November 29, 2007…The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has issued a Notice of Suspension to International Charity Association Network (ICAN), a registered charity under the Income…
Here are some handy resources and links for Canadian Charities conducting activities outside of Canada. www.GlobalPhilanthropy.ca CANADA REVENUE AGENCY PUBLICATIONS The Canada Revenue Agency has hundreds of forms and documents that are relevant to Canadian charities operating outside of Canada…
In the Travel Just case CRA had refused to register an organizations whose objects were very broad. The Federal Court of Appeal agreed with CRA. [Subsequently the Supreme Court of Canada refused an application for leave to appeal.] Travel Just…