Michael Morgan was called to the Ontario Bar in 1978, after having graduated from Trinity College at the University of Toronto with a B. Comm. and then from the University of Toronto Law School with an LL.B. During his career, Michael also earned a Master-in-Laws degree in Taxation Law from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1986.
Michael joined Chappell Partners LLP in July 2011 as a tax partner, after having been counsel to and a tax partner at other well-established business law firm in Toronto.
Michael practices in the areas of taxation law, estate planning, wills, trusts and estates, tax dispute resolution and business law. His practice is primarily focused on providing tax planning advice and strategies, estate planning advice and strategies, preparing wills and trusts, advising regarding estate administration, and representing clients in tax disputes and tax litigation, as well as providing business law advice regarding the establishment, reorganization and purchase/sale of businesses.
During his career, Michael has assisted clients to achieve business and/or personal objectives in connection with a broad range of activities, including:
- tax structuring for businesses, including tax advice regarding the establishment of businesses, the reorganization of corporations and the purchase/sale of businesses
- business succession arrangements, including the transfer of family-owned businesses between generations
- estate planning, including the structuring and preparation of wills, trusts and powers of attorney
- planning for estate and wealth preservation, including “estate freeze” reorganizations and “crystallization” transactions
- family trust planning, including the establishment of trusts and the preparation of trust agreements
- charitable gift planning, including the establishment of charitable foundations
- retirement planning strategies, including the establishment of individual pension plans and retirement compensation arrangements
- advising accountants, investment advisers, insurance advisers and financial planners regarding tax planning strategies, estate planning strategies and retirement planning strategies for their clients
- advising executors and/or beneficiaries in estate administration situations
- representing individual clients and corporate clients in tax disputes resolution and tax litigation (including tax appeals to tax courts)
- business law advice, including structuring and implementing business transactions (such as corporate reorganizations and the purchase/sale of businesses)
Michael has been a frequent speaker on a broad range of tax planning, estate planning and will preparation topics to various organizations, including The Law Society of Upper Canada, the Ontario Bar Association, and numerous business organizations. He has also been an adjunct professor at Queen’s University Law School, teaching the personal taxation course and the corporations taxation course, and previously served as an instructor in the Business Law course and the Estate Planning course of the Ontario Bar Admission course.
Michael is a member of The Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Tax Foundation, the Canadian Bar Association and the Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioners (STEP) and has been a member of the Estate Planning Council of Toronto. He is also active in a couple of community-based organizations.
