Koskocan – Tax Court of Canada finds that an individual signing most of a company’s cheques was not a de facto director (for director liability purposes)

A taxpayer sold all his shares of a company to his son, resigned as director, but continued to sign most of the cheques due to bank requirements. In rejecting the position of the ARQ that the taxpayer was a de facto director, so that he was liable for unremitted corporate GST under ETA s. 323, Archambault J noted that signing cheques was an officer rather than director core function - so that it could not be said that the taxpayer was usurping the function of the two (legal) directors - and that ETA s. 323 reflected an apparent legislative choice to limit its application to directors.

Neal Armstrong. Summary of Koskocan v. The Queen, 2016 CCI 277 under ETA s. 323(1).