Here is my updated list of Top Ten Canadian charity law issues.  Although there are many important and interesting legal issues that Canadian charities face these are some the most important issues to focus on before getting lost in the charity law forest. 

Canadian charities operating in Zimbabwe need to be extremely careful.  It is not the place for a new and inexperienced charity to begin foreign operations.  In fact, only Canadian charities with substantial experience in difficult international operations should even consider operating in Zimbabwe.  It is one of the most difficult countries to carry out charitable operations by virtue of the very difficult political, security, human rights and economic situation and the resultant Canadian and international sanctions.  This article will set out some information on the Zimbabwe Sanctions including the full text of the Act and Regulations governing the sanctions.

This article provides information and suggestions as to how a Canadian charity should, and should not, deal with CRA audits.  It also discusses possible CRA responses and the likelihood of each response. 

In this article I discuss the issue of whether Canada has too many charities or too few.  If one still wants to create a charity, some of the considerations and practical details of how one does establish a Canadian registered charity.

Here is an article I wrote for Charity Village entitled “Is it legal and ethical to take over a dormant Canadian charity? ” 

CRA has released its guidance “Upholding Human Rights and Charitable Registration”.  Any Canadian charity dealing with human rights issues will want to read this document.