Reading Time: 6 minutes Insurance is complex enough – what happens when it intersects with our tax system? We have good news… Under the Excise Tax Act, insurance is a financial service, making it exempt from GST. If we only had to address the GST, this would be a simple, short article. However… And we have bad news! The […]
Vehicle Insurance: What are you paying for anyway?
Reading Time: 6 minutes If you own a vehicle, you probably pay for insurance on it. But you may not know what you are actually paying for and why governments require it. This article briefly describes why governments require vehicle insurance. It then gives an overview of the insurance systems for mandatory insurance in Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan. […]
Everything You Need to Know About Wedding and Special Event Insurance
Reading Time: 5 minutes Wedding and special event insurance is a special kind of cancellation insurance that can protect you if your event goes awry. When you’re thinking about planning a big event—whether it’s a wedding, huge birthday bash or blowout retirement party—no one wants to think about cancellations or other disasters that could throw things off course. That […]
Act Now: Insurance policies and the duty to notify
Reading Time: 5 minutes Insurance policies require insureds to notify the insurer of claims and potential claims. Insurance policies, like any other contract, contain certain legal obligations. For example, insurance policies of all types require insureds to notify the insurer of loss or damage – or in the case of liability insurance, claims or potential claims. This duty typically […]
Advancing the Human Rights to Water and Sanitation under International Law: Human rights vs. investor rights
Reading Time: 7 minutes While international mechanisms are increasingly recognizing the human rights to water and sanitation, states must take action too. Concerns about the human rights to water and sanitation (HRWS) under international law have gained increasing attention in recent years. In Canada, ongoing water advisories within Indigenous communities prompted a 2014 Human Rights Watch report. The report […]
The Alberta Water Council and Consensus Decision-Making
Reading Time: 4 minutes The Alberta Water Council is interesting because of its role and how it makes decisions – by consensus only. This article is about two things. First it briefly describes the Alberta Water Council. Second, it talks about consensus decision-making – a way groups can work together toward a common goal even when their interests appear […]
NAFTA vs. CUSMA: Is Canada’s water a good or a right?
Reading Time: 5 minutes The impact of the new CUSMA on Canada’s water, as compared to NAFTA’s provisions, remains to be seen. While Canada has 20% of the world’s freshwater, less than half of this freshwater (7%) is renewable. The world, including our American neighbours, is struggling with water crises in many places. As Canadians, we should understand how […]
You Can Officiate Your Friends’ Weddings!
Reading Time: 5 minutes Did you know you can officiate your friends’ and family members’ marriage ceremonies in Alberta? The provincial government recently changed its policies to allow members of the public to perform wedding ceremonies.
Property Laws You’ve Maybe Never Heard Of
Reading Time: 7 minutes Did you know that each province in Canada has different property laws? Property laws deal with buying and selling land, dividing property at the end of a relationship, property liens and claims, registering interests in property, buying and selling goods, inheritances, etc.
What You Didn’t Know was a Crime in Canada
Reading Time: 4 minutes The Government of Canada recently gave the Criminal Code a legal face lift after conducting a detailed review to eliminate all the excess and outdated (err, weird) laws. But there still remains some interesting, unique and lesser known criminal offences.
