The Limits of Charity: Redefining the Boundaries of Charitable Trust Law

importance of charity remains as strong today as it was when the words of I Corinthians were written many hundreds of years ago, facilitating many social, economic and religious developments in our present Canadian society. By attracting and distributing assets to worthy causes across the country, charitable trusts occupy many service and financial roles otherwise left vacant by insufficient government resources. In return, charitable trusts are treated with benefits more favourable than those enjoyed by trusts of a non-charitable nature, the most significant being the exemption from taxation under federal and provincial legislation. As the Department of Finance has emphasized, The federal government appreciates the role of charities and does not wish to do anything to diminish their important position in Canadian society. It should be noted, however, that registered charities receive an important tax benefit. As Christina Medland has outlined, These advantages are justified on the basis that charities provide services which the government might otherwise wish to provide.