Fortius – Federal Court of Appeal finds that CRA was not to be precluded from revoking registered charity status prior to the charity’s objection and appeal being heard

After a registered charity (Fortius) received a notice informing it that its registration as a charity would be revoked 30 days later, it could have followed the normal process of filing an objection and, if the Minister confirmed her decision, filing an appeal pursuant to s. 172(3) (an “application”), which would be heard on its merits. Fortius tried to stop the revocation by bringing a motion applying for an order under s. 168(2)(b) for precluding the Minister from publishing the notice of revocation until Fortius had had the opportunity to pursue the above normal objection (and, if applicable, appeal) process, as well as seeking an interim relief order under Rules 372 and 373 enjoining the Minister from publishing the notice of revocation until the application was decided.

In finding that Fortius had not established that it would suffer irreparable harm if its motion was not granted, Rennie JA noted:

• Fortius, on its own evidence, was “in no better position to advance evidence on the application than it [was] currently on the motion”;
• The outcome on this motion would not eliminate the opportunity Fortius had to challenge the Minister’s decision by following the normal objection and appeal procedure;
• Furthermore, the loss of the statutory benefits conferred upon registered charities was not in itself evidence of irreparable harm, i.e., “irreparable harm does not encompass the ordinary consequences that flow from an entity losing its registered charity status (such as loss of tax-exempt status, ineligibility to issue donation receipts, and payment of a revocation tax pursuant to section 188 ...)”.

Neal Armstrong. Summary of Fortius Foundation v. Canada (National Revenue), 2022 FCA 176 under s. 168(4)(b).