Blog

The Ontario real estate market is in a complicated state of transition, making real estate lawyers’ work more important than ever. In the weeks leading up to the Government of Ontario’s introduction of sweeping new housing regulations in April 2017, advocacy groups and the press called on the province to take action on housing affordability. … Read more

Canada and the United States have a unique relationship: the two countries share the world’s longest border, are among each other’s top trading partners, and possess close cultural and historical ties. Bilateral trust between the nations has enabled a relatively free flow of goods, services and people across borders, as illustrated by Canada-U.S. preclearance measures. … Read more

The Government of Ontario has passed a number of new housing and real estate regulations of late, including highly publicized rent control measures and a 15 per cent tax on foreign homebuyers that aims to make housing more affordable to young Ontarians. It may take years to reasonably assess the efficacy of these programs, but … Read more

In 2016, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-6 in Parliament. The central goal of the bill was to roll back changes to the Citizenship Act introduced by the previous government’s Bill C-24, the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, which was called discriminatory by opposition lawmakers, immigration activists, and more than one prominent immigration lawyer. Progress … Read more

Last October, the Government of Canada took steps to fulfill a campaign promise by announcing the impending repeal of conditional permanent residences, a program put in place by the Stephen Harper administration to prevent marriage fraud and “marriages of convenience.” Under the rule, “the permanent residence of some sponsored spouses was conditional on their remaining … Read more

Before purchasing a home in Ontario, most prospective buyers will hire a home inspector to ensure the property’s systems – heating, ventilation, electrical, septic, etc… – are functioning as expected. Like a good real estate lawyer, a professional home inspector can supply peace of mind to buyers. This April, the Province of Ontario passed the … Read more

In April, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and her Liberal Party introduced an ambitious plan to regulate the province’s runaway housing market. The proposed legislation will have a notable effect on the City of Toronto and Greater Toronto Area, which has driven much of the market’s acceleration. Politicians, advocates, and real estate lawyers continue to disagree … Read more

On April 13, the Government of Canada introduced legislation ‘to legalize, strictly regulate and restrict access to cannabis.’ Assuming the legislation passes, Canada will become ‘the largest developed nation to end marijuana prohibition,’ the BBC reports. Alongside the highly publicized marijuana legislation, Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould announced significant changes to Canada’s impaired driving laws. … Read more

Ava Williams, a former student at the University of Western Ontario, has initiated civil litigation against Detective Paul Gambriel and the London Police Services Board over a sexual assault allegation which was dismissed as “unfounded,” the Globe and Mail reports. The lawsuit alleges that the detective’s decision was based on myths and stereotypes; that “the … Read more

In Canada, secondary residences are considered taxable assets, meaning owners will be taxed for any increases in the property’s value when the property eventually changes hands, including when it is inherited. This can be a tricky issue for real estate lawyers and their clients, and was the subject of a recent Globe and Mail article … Read more