Key risks for businesses in 2016

This year, businesses will face more than slow economic and revenue growth. They’ll also face 10 key legal risks, says a new BLG report. Those include:

Increased scrutiny from tax authorities. There’s a global trend “towards greater tax transparency,” says the report, which “will only make revenue authorities more aggressive in seeking confidential information.” Read: 4 ways CRA is making it easier to file returns

A rise in privacy concerns. Privacy class actions triggered by data breaches are growing in popularity, the report says. As such, there are “between twenty and thirty privacy class actions currently pending or already certified.” Read: IIROC’s guide to boosting cyber security

Regulatory uncertainty. In 2016, the report says, “We expect that certain initiatives which have taken a long time to enact will impact Canadian public companies.” But, measures such as the CSA’s proposed takeover bid regime (which was announced in March 2015) have yet to be finalized.

The impacts of recent trade agreements. The report says, “the Trans-Pacific Partnership is considered to be the most comprehensive trade agreement presently in existence. Taking into account the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) that Canada concluded with the European Union last year, the North American Free Trade Agreement, and a growing number of bilateral trade agreements, Canada is entering into a new era of unprecedented free trade.” Read: How the TPP will benefit Canada

To find out more about these and other risks, click here.

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