Blog: Tony Anderson

Discretionary Rights within Contracts Must be Exercised in Good Faith

In addition to the precise obligations required from parties to a contract, a common feature seen among contracting parties are options more formally referred to as “discretional rights”. As the name suggests, these rights afford parties certain latitude in the manner in which contractual rights may be performed. Although these tools afford parties flexibility with respect to contractual performance, the Supreme Court of Canada (the “SCC”) has recently decided that these rights (or options) must be exercised in good faith.

The general doctrine of “good faith” is a longstanding organizing principal recognized under Canadian contract law. This duty imposes a…

New Rent Relief Program Announced to Replace CECRA

Some good news for commercial tenants: the red tape which plagued the Canadian Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program has been reduced in favor of an easy-to-access application process that replaces the system of numerous prescribed documents required under CECRA.

On October 9, the Federal Government announced details regarding relief to commercial tenants who have experienced reduced revenues due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This new program will become the successor to the CECRA program originally announced in May of this year and officially now concluded as of September 30, 2020.

In its place, the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) will…

Land Owner Transparency Registry to Launch November 30, 2020

It was recently announced that much anticipated Land Owner Transparency Registry (the “Registry”) will become effective as of November 30, 2020 (the “Effective Date”) with the Province approving Order in Council No. 549, bringing into force almost all provisions of the governing legislation: the Land Owner Transparency Act (the “Act”).

The purpose of the Act is to mandate reporting for indirect ownership of land in the Province which shall be maintained in the Registry and publicly accessible. Prior to the Effective Date, only legal ownership of lands was recorded which meant that disclosure of ownership began and ended at the…

CECRA Program Extended Throughout July

The federal government has just announced the extension the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) Program to cover the month of July. This extends the Program’s eligibility by one month beyond the original three months of April, May and June

As per our previous blog posts, the CECRA Program offers forgivable loans to qualifying small businesses (those that have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic) who lease commercial space from qualifying landlords. Ultimately, the federal and provincial governments will cover 50% of the gross rent, the eligible tenant would pay 25% and the landlord would forgo the remaining 25%.

Although…

No Eviction for Eligible Commercial Tenants Unless Landlords Apply for CECRA

When the Canadian Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“CECRA”) Program was first revealed, two issues were highlighted by the public concerning eligibility:

The requirement that the relevant commercial property had been used to secure a mortgage loan; and that commercial tenants were at the whim of their respective landlords to apply for the Program.

The former concern has recently been addressed by the Federal Government by eliminating the requirement for a mortgage to be registered and, as of today, it appears the latter issue has also been remedied.

This morning, the Provincial Finance Minister, Carole James, announced a new emergency order…

No Need For a Mortgage – Update to the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“CECRA”) Program

Scrutinized criteria regarding the eligibility of the CECRA Program appears to have been subtly addressed in recent days.  The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (“CMHC”) – the entity charged with administering the Program – had previously published criteria for eligible commercial landlords and tenants on their website. Among those conditions stood the requirement for the commercial property (which housed the affected commercial tenant) to have been used to secure a mortgage loan.

Previously, CMHC’s webpage contained a footnote next to this requirement with the following:

For those property owners who do not have a mortgage, an alternative mechanism will be…

LTSA Launches LandTransparency.ca Website

Prior to COVID-19 consuming the entirety of the daily news cycle, a major focus for property owners in the Province was the anticipated Land Owner Transparency Act (“LOTA”).

As part of the 30-Point Plan for Housing Affordability in British Columbia, this legislation – the first of its kind in North America – was to establish the Land Owner Transparency Registry (“LOTR”): a publically accessible registry to record beneficial ownership rather than the current recording of only legal ownership.

News regarding LOTA has understandably slowed in light of the global focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Land Title and Survey…

APRIL 30 – UPDATE TO CANADA EMERGENCY COMMERCIAL RENT ASSISTANCE (CECRA)

On April 24, 2020, the federal government reached an agreement in principle with all provinces and territories to implement the CECRA program for qualifying small businesses. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that morning that eligible small businesses affected by Covid-19 will be receiving 75% in rent relief. Those details along with further particulars from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (“CMHC”) include the following:

Eligible Tenants. The commercial tenants eligible for this program will be those that are paying no more than $50,000 gross per month in rent AND have either temporarily ceased operations (i.e. generating no revenues) or have…

CANADA EMERGENCY COMMERCIAL RENT ASSISTANCE (CECRA) UPDATE

The federal government has reached an agreement in principle with all provinces and territories to implement the CECRA program for qualifying small businesses. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced this morning that eligible small businesses affected by Covid-19 will be receiving seventy-five percent (75%) in rent relief. Details released this morning include the following:

Eligible Tenants. The commercial tenants eligible for this program will be those that are paying less than $50,000 per month in rent and have either temporarily ceased operations or have experienced at least a 70% drop in revenues. This will also include non-profit organizations. Further details are…

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