Firm Profile |
Welcome to Chancery Chambers! Chancery Chambers is a leading set of barristers & solicitors led by Neil W. Nichols specializing in all aspects of Tax, Commercial, Estates and Chancery law - the law of Trusts and Equity. What is Chancery? It is the Court which applies the Law of Equity in Business, Trusts and Estates. The Chancellor also collects the King’s taxes - but don’t expect Equity from the tax collector! In England the Chancellor was the Keeper of the King’s Seal, called The Great Seal. This Seal was needed to start a lawsuit in the Court of Common Pleas (thus the Common Law), a very strict formal court which sometimes yielded unfair and unreasonable legalistic judgments, but no justice. However, the victim could Petition the King to exercise his discretion - after all he was the King - for a "fair and equitable" judgment overruling the unfair Common Law judgment. Thus the Law of Equity was administered by the Chancellor on behalf of the King in the Court of Chancery, overruling the Common Law. It is that way today in the Law and Equity Act (B.C.), namely, all Courts do both law and equity, but Equity prevails. Chancery’s greatest contribution was the development of the TRUST, which separated legal title from beneficial title to property and made the property holder - the Trustee - liable to hold the property for the use and benefit of the true beneficial owner, without the beneficial owner getting his hands on the property so as to waste it. Thus the cornerstone of the Law of Equity is the Trust, the principles of which were refined and enforced in the Courts of Chancery, and are today enforced in all Courts of British Columbia and Canada. Equity is also the fount of the law of Confidence, enforcing confidentiality in the affairs of business. And of course someone had to collect the King’s taxes, and that fell to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. In Canada, tax appeals used to go the Tax Review Board and on appeal to the Exchequer Court. Now it is called the Tax Court of Canada and on appeal to the Federal Court. The Law of Equity and the rules of Taxation are among the most complex in legal matters and it takes a specialist to know the way around and sometimes through. Chancery Chambers comprises Counsel for Tax, Trusts, Wills & Estates, Real Estate and Corporate-Commercial matters. We appear in all Canadian Federal and Tax Courts and the Courts of British Columbia and Alberta. Chancery Chambers draws its strength from the wide-ranging expertise of its members, their diligence and creative solutions. It is therefore able to provide quality advice in respect of all these types of problems. Whether the concerns of a client relate to Taxation, Trusts, their Estate Plan or Private Foundation, or the successful operation of their underlying Business, Corporation and Real Estate interests, Chancery Chambers is able to provide the tax-effective and creative assistance that is demanded in today’s marketplace. Chancery Chambers is committed to providing an approachable, professional and practical service to all of its clients. Work is completed promptly and in a cost-effective manner. The aim of Chancery Chambers is to provide quality service that satisfies the requirements of the client over the long term. We don’t get clients: we keep clients. Chancery Chambers has a reputation of giving leading advice on Tax, Trusts, Wills & Estates, Real Estate and Corporate-Commercial issues. We offer expertise in each of these special areas with a particular emphasis on tax-wise transactions. At Chancery Chambers we specialize in all aspects of
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