Erin Strashin

The appellant trusts appealed income tax reassessments for the 2006 and 2007 taxation years, arguing they were resident in Alberta and subject to Alberta provincial tax.

The Minister of Finance reassessed the trusts as residents of Ontario.

The court applied the central management and control test to determine trust residency.

The court found that the trustees in Alberta performed primarily administrative functions, while the actual management and control of the trust property was exercised by a beneficiary and professional advisors in Ontario.

The appeals were dismissed.

The Minister of Revenue reassessed two trusts, the Herman Grad 2000 Family Trust and the Marya Grad Spousal Trust, for provincial taxes on the basis that they were resident in Ontario, not Alberta, during the 2006 to 2009 taxation years.

The trusts appealed, arguing their trustees resided in Alberta and exercised management and control there.

The Superior Court of Justice dismissed the appeals, finding that the central management and control of both trusts was actually exercised by the settlor and his financial advisor, both resident in Ontario, who directed the trusts' investment and distribution decisions.