In the recent Burke v. Hudson’s Bay Co. decision, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) held that plan members who were transferred to a successor pension plan as part of a sale of business were not entitled to a pro-rata share of the surplus that existed at the time of the transfer. The Hudson’s Bay […]
During late 2008 and early 2009, the Actuarial Standards Board promulgated several changes to the Standards of Practice for Pension Plans (SPPP) applicable for any pension commuted value (CV) calculation with an effective date after April 1, 2009. However, two elements of the targeted changes were not implemented at that date, primarily to allow plan […]
The actuarial standards applicable to virtually all defined benefit (DB) pension plans in Canada are undergoing two distinct changes in 2011. These updates will affect how actuaries determine the assumptions, apply actuarial methods and prepare their reports for all funding actuarial valuations effective Dec. 31, 2010. Changes to actuarial valuation standards The new Standards of […]
Fasken Martineau recently hosted a seminar outlining incremental changes to federal and provincial pension standards. Yesterday we covered what’s happening in Ontario, today we break down the federal actions. Bill C-9: The Jobs and Economic Growth Act This act applies to all federally regulated pension funds. It increased the defined benefit surplus threshold from 10% […]
Academic papers discuss the ins and outs of dual-class shares.
The news over the past few years has been dominated by stories of massive frauds and Ponzi schemes—Enron, Bernie Madoff and Earl Jones to name a few. We have also witnessed spectacular investment meltdowns such as Long Term Capital Management and Amaranth. More recently, there has also been much discussion about the moral ambiguity of […]
Dual-class shares and the governance discount.
Two years ago, Canada’s socially responsible investing (SRI) community was in a cheerful, even celebratory mood. Many of the country’s major pension funds, particularly in the public sector, had reversed their position on sustainable investing, embracing the concept that environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues do have an impact on a company’s bottom line and […]
Canada is facing an academic research deficit on responsible investment. However, there are new opportunities on the horizon, including a major international conference and the Carleton Centre for Community Innovation’s Responsible Investment Initiative. The project has already released its first paper, Responsible Property Investing and Property Management: Exploring the Impacts of Good Labour Practices on […]
A new survey suggests that most Canadians strongly support the concept of sustainability, even though they don’t always know what it means. The Hoggan & Associates 2009 study on Canadians’ attitudes toward sustainability was released June 15 at the Canadian Responsible Investment Conference in Winnipeg. Hoggan & Associates vice-president Nancy McHarg, who presented the study’s […]