Monetary Penalties Levied Against Advisors In A Tax Case, Guindon v. Canada: Unconstitutional?

Guindon v. Canada 2015 SCC 41 ("Guindon")

Agreed Facts before the Tax Court:

• The Settlor was going to acquire timeshare units called Biennial Vacation Ownership Weeks ("VOWs") from TDL, which held the property of Hawkes Nest Plantation Resort/Arawak Inn in Turks and Caicos Island [sic];
  • After acquiring the VOWs the Settlor would gift the VOWs to the Trustee, who in turn would exchange the VOWs to the beneficiaries of the Trust, in return for the payment of a vendor take‐back charge;
  • The amount of the vendor take‐back charge that was to be paid by beneficiaries of the Trust was $3,248 per VOW;
  • It was anticipated that the beneficiaries would donate the VOWs to a registered Canadian charitable organization for a receipt for the fair market value of the donated VOWs; and