A History of Canadian Corporate Law: A Divergent Path from the American Model?

Harwell Wells, ed, The Research Handbook on the History of Corporate and Company Law (Northampton: Edward Elgar, 2018) 451.

33 Pages Posted: 25 May 2018 Last revised: 19 Aug 2020

See all articles by Fenner L. Stewart

Fenner L. Stewart

University of Calgary, Faculty of Law

Date Written: May 15, 2018

Abstract

This chapter provides a brief history of Canada’s corporate law. In part, it contemplates the judicial interpretations of the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA), and the controversies that arose from them. From this, it explains two claims that are often made about the CBCA. Some assert that it is more shareholder centric than the American models, while others assert the opposite: that it is more stakeholder centric. The chapter concludes that although both of these interpretations of the CBCA are reasonable from a gloss of the law, the reality of corporate governance in Canada is that managers, not shareholders nor stakeholders, have firm control over the corporation.

Part 1 begins with an explanation of Canada’s first common law corporation. Part 2 traces the struggle to establish a single standard for incorporation (i.e., incorporation by registration). Part 3 describes the relatively slow rise of Canada’s Modern Corporation as compared to the modern corporation’s rapid ascent in the United States. Part 4 explains the rise of the Canadian Welfare State, while Part 5 makes clear how the Welfare State helped cement strong shareholder protections in the CBCA. Part 5 also details the period of the late 1960s to the mid 1970s, which marked the establishment of Canada’s Modern Corporation. Part 6 traces the most controversial judicial interpretations of the CBCA’s directorial provisions, as well as the most notable reactions to those interpretations. Finally, Part 7 offers some concluding thoughts about corporate governance in Canada today.

Suggested Citation

Stewart, Fenner L., A History of Canadian Corporate Law: A Divergent Path from the American Model? (May 15, 2018). Harwell Wells, ed, The Research Handbook on the History of Corporate and Company Law (Northampton: Edward Elgar, 2018) 451., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3173757

Fenner L. Stewart (Contact Author)

University of Calgary, Faculty of Law ( email )

Murray Fraser Hall
2500 University Dr. N.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4
Canada

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