Derrick’s practice covers a broad spectrum of income tax law matters with a focus on corporate and personal tax planning, mergers and acquisitions, corporate reorganizations, and dispute resolution with the Canada Revenue Agency and provincial taxing authorities.
Derrick is a sessional instructor of corporate tax law at the Thompson Rivers University Faculty of Law and has presented and written on a variety of tax related topics in various forums.
Credentials
- Bachelor of Commerce, Lakehead University, 2010
- Juris Doctor, University of Alberta, 2013
- Taxation of Canadian Oil and Gas Companies, University of Calgary, 2014
- CPA Canada In-Depth Tax Course, 2017
- CPA Canada In-Depth International Tax Course, 2019
Memberships & Affiliations
- Member, Law Society of Alberta
- Member, Calgary Bar Association
- Member, Canadian Bar Association
- Member, Canadian Tax Foundation
Publications & Presentations
- Co-Presented, “Common Structures for Owner-Managed Businesses and Sale Planning”, Lunch and Learn, September 2025
- Co-Presented, “What’s a Taxpayer to Do? Standard of Care for a Reasonable Taxpayer”, Canadian Petroleum Tax Society, 2025 Annual Conference, June 2025
- Co-Presented, “Business Sales and Transitions: Tax Tips, Traps and Opportunities”, FF Lunch and Learn, May 2025
- “Common Structures for Owner-Managed Businesses”, (2025) Entrepreneurial CPAs of Calgary
- “Subsection 111(5): Is a Loss Business Defined by Who Owns It?”, Vol. 24, No. 3, Tax for the Owner-Manager, July 2024
- “Introduction to Search Funds and Acquisitions”, (2024) Haskayne School of Business MBA Program
- Sessional Lecturer, Corporate Tax, Thompson Rivers University Faculty of Law, 2023 to Present
- “Shareholder Agreements: Update 2022”, (2022) Entrepreneurial CPAs of Calgary
- “Tax Case Law Update for Private Corporations”, (2022) CPA Calgary
- “After a Pandemic: Estate Planning from a Legal Perspective”, (2022) Estate Planning Council of Calgary
- “Trust Law, the Taxation of Trusts and the New Trust Reporting Rules”, (2021) Entrepreneurial CPAs of Calgary
- “Tax Dispute and Case Law Update for Private Corporations”, (2021) Entrepreneurial CPAs of Calgary
- “Debt Restructuring in the Resource Sector: Selected Issues” Corporate Structures & Groups Journal (Federated Press) (2021).
- “The Death of the Tariff: A Review of the Tax Court’s Discretionary Approach to Costs Awards” (2020) 68:2 Canadian Tax Journal 409-38.
- “Derivative Assessments: Challenging the Underlying Liability”, (2020) Tax Dispute Publication.
- “B.C. Court of Appeal Gives New Life to Post-Fairmont Rectification”, (2020) Tax Dispute Publication.
- “CRA Audit Powers: Recent Developments”, (2019) Canadian Petroleum Tax Society Fall Lecture Series.
- “Rectification Strikes Back: B.C. Court of Appeal Allows Rectification of Tax Mistake”, (2019) Tax Practitioners’ Forum.
- “CRA Audit Powers: Recent Developments”, Canadian Petroleum Tax Society Fall Lecture Series, October 2019.
- “Groscki: Scope for Director’s Liability Under Section 159”, Vol. 18, No. 2, Tax for the Owner-Manager, April 2018.
- “Drafting Wills and Trusts”, Legal Education Society of Alberta (LESA) Seminar, March 2017.
- “Alternative Arguments on Appeal: Does Finance Get the Last Word?”, Vol. 16, No.4, Tax for the Owner-Manager, October 2016.
- “A Primer on Trust Law and the Taxation of Trusts”, Canadian Tax Foundation, Calgary Young Practitioners Group and Canadian Bar Association (Alberta), Tax Specialists Group Presentation, April and May 2016.
- “Common Tax Issues for Corporate Lawyers”, Canadian Bar Association (Alberta), Tax Non-Specialists Group Presentation, October 2015.
- “Legal Invoices: Maintaining Privilege While Supporting Deductibility”, Tax for the Owner-Manager, July 2015.
- “The Conditions for-and Scope of- Subsection 152(4.3) Consequential Reassessments,” XIX Tax Litigation (Federated Press), 2015.
- “Planning for Professionals – Mitigating the Personal Services Business Risk”, Canadian Bar Association (Alberta), Tax Specialist Group Presentation, September 2014.
- “When is a Loan to a Shareholder-Employee Made as a Result of Employment?”, Vol. 14, No. 1, Tax for the Owner-Manager, January 2014.