Teaching

I am currently teaching the following courses at Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, in the Juris Doctor (JD) and the Master of Laws (LLM) programs.

This course introduces the fundamental principles of the Canadian federal income tax system. We focus on building the vocabulary of taxation and exploring the social, political, and economic factors that shape the development of the law. By the end of the course, students should understand why societies tax, who and what they tax, and how they do so; be familiar with the general structure and principles of the Canadian federal income tax system; and develop skills in close, critical reading and interpretation of primary and secondary legal sources.

 

The central focus of the course is on the tax principles for the treatment of revenue, losses, and expenses earned or incurred by individuals. We further discuss general tax policy issues and situate the income tax within the broader Canadian tax system. To ensure students obtain a practical understanding of tax law, the course also introduces the tax administration and dispute resolution frameworks.

 

Throughout the course, students have the opportunity to build their skills in interpreting complex statutes and applying tax rules to facts. The course uses a combination of lectures, videos, short exercises, and problems for discussion, which provides students with several opportunities for active learning.

In modern and contemporary society, taxation stands as a fundamental means to articulate a conception of economic and distributive justice. Tax policy choices reflect a people’s views on the desired size and shape of government and, more profoundly, its social, political, and cultural aspirations as a society. Yet, in a globalized economy, domestic tax policies cause significant externalities for other states. As a result, a country’s tax policies influence and are significantly constrained by other countries’ policies.
 
This seminar explores the foundational principles and objectives guiding tax policy. We will study seminal tax policy literature alongside contemporary works that revisit these principles in the context of 21st-century issues such as economic globalization, growing income and wealth inequality, and environmental challenges. We will also examine how tax systems across the globe relate to each other and analyze the role of internationaltax policy in addressing global justice concerns, particularly in light of existing international inequalities and the increasing influence of global social structures in the international tax domain. From the lens of global justice, we will explore several contemporary issues that shape tax policymaking worldwide, such as tax avoidance and tax competition, the tax challenges brought about by the increasingly digitized economy, and the ongoing reallocation of the international tax base.
 
The course employs a combination of readings, written assignments, and in-class discussions to promote rigorous critical thinking, active reading, and effective verbal and written communication. The course also focuses on how to author a legal research paper.

This course provides students with an in-depth understanding of the international dimensions of the Canadian Income Tax Act (ITA), tax treaties, and recent global tax reform measures, enhancing their statutory interpretation and problem-solving skills. The globalization of trade and investment flows profoundly affects the practices and policies of income taxation, particularly for Canadian corporations engaged in international business. Students will explore cross-border tax issues that are critical for Canadian lawyers. The curriculum covers both domestic tax law and international tax treaties, focusing on jurisdiction to tax, non-residents investing in Canada, cross-border services, Canadian investments offshore, the foreign affiliate system, foreign tax credits, electronic commerce, and transfer pricing. By examining case studies and real-world examples, students will develop a comprehensive understanding of how international tax principles are applied in practice.

 

The course will also address the ongoing international dialogue on tax policy spurred by initiatives from the OECD and the G20. This dialogue aims to identify and deter strategies multinational enterprises use to shift income from high-tax jurisdictions, which can create friction among countries regarding their taxing rights. The course will explore these challenges and potential modifications to tax laws, the role of private and public international law, and the practical responses by multinational enterprises.

Consumption taxation is the most important source of tax revenue worldwide after income taxation. While income tax is comprehensively studied in basic tax law courses across the country, law schools often provide limited opportunities for students to explore the economic, political, and legal complexities of consumption taxation. Many economists favour consumption taxation due to its neutrality towards economic actors. Consumption taxes are also considered more efficient for controlling the economy in the interests of economic stability compared to income taxes. Nonetheless, the implementation of consumption taxation raises pertinent questions about equity and distributive justice due to its potential regressivity.

 

The primary form of consumption tax in Canada is the federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) and, in some provinces, the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) or the Provincial Sales Tax (PST). Most Canadians pay consumption taxes daily on the goods and services they acquire. Globally, consumption taxes account for a significant and growing proportion of tax revenues. Beyond its pervasiveness and apparent simplicity, consumption taxation elicits interesting political and legal questions. Politically, the adoption of the GST in Canada in the 1990s faced opposition from almost 80 percent of Canadians, despite the broad support of public finance scholars. Technically, the Canadian consumption tax system is globally unique. It generally mirrors the European-style value-added tax but is one of the few systems worldwide to have been successfully implemented at a subnational level.

 

This seminar examines the nature and application of consumption tax law in Canada and explores common principles of consumption taxes in other jurisdictions. It discusses fundamental issues such as consumption versus income as a basis for taxation, overviews its underlying principles and policies, and analyzes the Canadian rules under the Excise Tax Act. Students will learn why consumption is taxed, the different forms of consumption taxes, the key principles of modern consumption tax systems, and how those principles are operationalized in the Canadian tax system. Additionally, students will learn problem-solving by applying normative concepts together with basic technical rules. The seminar will help students develop important legal skills, such as statutory interpretation, analytical thinking, problem-solving, and writing.