Providing flexibility to corporations and business in response to COVID-19.

Last week the Ontario government passed Bill 190, COVID-19 Response and Reforms to Modernize Ontario Act, 2020, which included amendments to the Ontario Corporations Act (OCA). Legislative provisions in the OCA will replace the Emergency Order 0. Reg. 107/20. They are retroactive to March 17, 2020 and allow for online annual meetings and the delaying of annual meetings. These provisions are still scheduled to expire 90 days after the state of emergency has ended, but the legislative amendments give the government more flexibility to extend and specify procedures. What is new in both the OCA and the Ontario Not-for-profit Corporations Act are provisions allowing for the electronic filing of documents with the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services; this may (at the Ministry’s discretion) include even letters patent and supplementary letters patent. More details to come. Read the update here.