By Julius Melnitzer | January 11, 2025
FORMER LEAFS JOIN TAVARES IN MULTIMILLION DOLLAR BONUS TAX DISPUTE
According to The Province, former Toronto Maple Leafs players Patrick Marleau and Jake Muzzin have filed Tax Court of Canada appeals mimicking John Tavares’ challenge to the Canada Revenue Agency’s $6.8 million assessment on a $15.4 million bonus paid as part of the seven-year $77 million contract he signed with the team when he moved from New York to Toronto as a free agent in 2018. Tavares argues that his bonus is subject to the Canada-U.S.A. Tax Treaty and therefore should be taxed at 15% rather than the approximately 50% that marks the top income tax bracket. Marleau and Muzzin are making virtually identical arguments in appealing the $3.8 million and $3.7 million assessments against them, respectively. Tavares is having a banner season with the Lears; Muzzin, a former defenceman, joined the Leafs’ front office after an injury ended his career in 2022; and Marleau has worked as a player development coach and hockey operations adviser for the San Jose Sharks since retiring from his 23-year NHL career in 2023.
Related Article: Tavares takes on CRA
JUDGE DONS VR HEADSET TO VIEW EVIDENCE
In what Practice Source calls a “Legal First”, Broward County, Florida Judge Andrew Siegel and the lawyers involved in a trial he was adjudicating used a VR headset to watch a simulation of an alleged assault around which the case centred.
Related Article: Despite Ontario Superior Court of Justice guidelines, virtual proceedings the rule not the exception
LEAVE NO BAR TO LAWYER’S BONUS
A UK employment tribunal has ruled that Bev Gleeson, a government lawyer with 20 years’ service, was entitled to a ￡1,500 bonus (about C$2,700) even though he was on a six-month “career break” to “care for individuals who have disabilities” when the payment to staff was made. According to The Law Society Gazette, Gleeson was not paid or expected to work during her leave “but would still be under some obligations to the department”.
Related Article: Canadian jurisdictions enacting pay transparency legislation, but more work to be done
JEFFREY LEON TO BE FULL-TIME ARBITRATOR
Jeffrey Leon, who was head of litigation at both Bennett Jones LLP and Fasken Martineau Dumoulin LLP and a former president of the American College of Trial Lawyers as well as The Advocates’ Society during his 45-year career, has retired from Bennett Jones to continue his arbitration and mediation practice at Toronto’s Arbitration Place.
Related Article: Learning from the US & Vice Versa
ALEXI EMPOWERS LITIGATORS WITH NEW LEGAL REASONING TOOL
Alexi, a leading AI litigation platform based in Toronto, has announced the launch of what it calls the “first-ever advanced legal reasoning [ALR] tool”. The tool, Alexi states, “allows lawyers to
upload tens of thousands of documents to uncover insights into the strengths, weaknesses, and potential strategies buried in the complexities of the facts – enabling lawyers to make informed decisions faster than ever.” Key features include case strategy development, chronology building and outcome-oriented strategy suggestions.
Related Article: Alexi AI cuts routine litigation task time by 80%
Julius Melnitzer is a Toronto-based legal affairs writer, ghostwriter, writing coach and media trainer. Readers can reach him at [email protected] or https://legalwriter.net/contact.