Novotny Wesley

Education

McGill University, BEng, 2000, with distinction University of British Columbia, MASc, 2003 Dalhousie University, LLB, 2006, dean's list University of Cambridge (UK), LLM, 2009, first class honours 

Bar Admissions

Ontario, 2008 (inactive) Alberta, 2009 

Wesley R. Novotny

Partner

T: 403.298.3447 / T: 780.969.2649 / E: novotnyw@bennettjones.com

Calgary / Edmonton


Wesley Novotny provides tax advice on a wide range of corporate and personal tax matters. Wes has extensive experience advising clients in disputes with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), having managed large and complex corporate and personal CRA audits. He has also successfully represented clients through the CRA appeals process as well as before the Tax Court of Canada and Federal Court of Appeal.

Wes has been involved with employee ownership trusts since their infancy in Canada. He was a member of the Advisory Board of the Canadian Employee Ownership Coalition, including providing submissions to the Department of Finance regarding draft legislative proposals. Wes advised Grantbook on one of the first employee ownership trust transactions in Canada.

Wes also provides tax and pension benefits standards advice to Canadian pension plans. He advises on farm taxation matters, including succession and reorganizations of farm businesses.

Wes clerked for Madame Justice Alice Desjardins and Mr. Justice Robert Décary of the Federal Court of Appeal. He attended McGill University as a Loran Scholar. He continues to be involved with the Loran Scholars Foundation and has assisted with the Loran selection process since 2009.

Wes is a member of the Canadian Tax Foundation, serves on the board of directors of 4-H Alberta and is a past director and president of the Canadian Petroleum Tax Society.

Select Experience

  • Grantbook in its implementation of an employee ownership trust structure under the Income Tax Act (Canada)

  • The Patrick D. Bowlen Trust, as Canadian tax and corporate counsel, in its US$4.65-billion sale of the Denver Broncos NFL franchise to the Walton-Penner group
  • Crocodile Gold Corp., (TSX) in its combination with Newmarket Gold Inc. (TSXV) pursuant to a court approved plan of arrangement for approximately $185 million
  • Feedlot Health Management Services Ltd., in its successful appeal to the Tax Court of Canada in a case involving the interpretation of fundamental aspects of Canada's scientific research and experimental development taxation regime
  • MEG Energy Corp,. in its completed initial public offering of its common shares on August 6, 2010.  A total of 20,000,000 shares were issued at $35.00 per share, for aggregated gross proceeds of $700,000,000

Recent Recognitions

  • Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
    Repeatedly Recommended, Corporate Tax

Recent Insights, News & Events

  • Climate Change Initiatives: Selected Recent Changes and the Application of Existing Tax Principles to Clean Energy—Part 2
    Articles / July 21, 2025
    Part II focuses on the practical application of the Clean Technology, Clean Hydrogen, Clean Technology Manufacturing and Clean Electricity ITCs—many of which were enacted in 2024 through Bill C-59 and Bill C-69. The authors also examine the soon-to-be-legislated EV supply chain ITC
  • BCI Acquires BBGI Global Infrastructure SA in £1 Billion Take-Private
    Client Work / June 23, 2025
    British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI) has acquired 100 percent of the issued shares of BBGI Global Infrastructure SA in an all-cash £1 billion take-private deal. 
  • Beyond Succession: How Employee Ownership Trusts Are Reshaping Canadian Business Exits
    Podcast / June 19, 2025
    What if the best buyer for your business is already working for you? In this episode of Beyond Succession, host Leah Tolton is joined by Bennett Jones partner Wes Novotny, one of the first lawyers in Canada to advise on the adoption of an employee ownership trust (EOT). Together, they unpack how EOTs are changing how Canadian business owners think about succession.
  • Ontario Bar Association: Insights on Employee Ownership Trusts
    Speaking Engagements / April 29, 2025
    Wesley Novotny spoke at the Ontario Bar Association’s Buying or Selling a Business 2025 program on March 19. 
  • Introduction to Employee Ownership Trusts With CIBC Financial
    Speaking Engagements / April 29, 2025
    Wesley Novotny, Osie Ukwuoma, and Wade Ritchie spoke to CIBC’s financial, tax, and estate planning professionals on Canada’s new Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) framework. 
  • A New Chapter in Business Succession: The Emergence of Employee Ownership Trusts
    Articles / February 21, 2025
    Wesley Novotny, Wade Ritchie and Zachary Thacker write in Law360 Canada on Employee Ownership Trusts and the benefits they offer to employees and business owners.
  • Under the Hood of Canada's First EOT: Grantbook's Landmark Sale
    In The News / February 18, 2025
    Wesley Novotny speaks with Canadian Lawyer about Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs)  and Bennett Jones work for Grantbook—one of the very first Canadian business to be sold to an EOT. The EOT structure allows employees to become the indirect owners of a qualifying business.
  • Bennett Jones Leading the Way in Employee Ownership Trusts
    Blog / February 13, 2025
    Effective January 1, 2024, Canada introduced detailed rules into the Income Tax Act (Canada) to facilitate and encourage employee ownership of small and medium sized Canadian businesses through the creation of employee ownership trusts (EOT).
  • Grantbook Launches a Canadian Leading Employee Ownership Trust
    Client Work / February 05, 2025
    Grantbook has implemented an Employee Ownership Trust structure under new rules which became effective January 1, 2024, under the Income Tax Act (Canada). 
  • Bennett Jones Short-Listed as Canadian Tax Disputes Law Firm of the Year in ITR Tax Awards
    Announcements / August 01, 2024
    Bennett Jones is nominated as Canadian Tax Disputes Law Firm of the Year in the ITR Americas Tax Awards 2024. The firm's top-ranked, award-winning national Tax Disputes team includes Ed Kroft, Jehad Haymour, Deborah Toaze, Wes Novotny, Sophie Virji, Brynne Harding, Sam McDonald and Anna Lekach. Working collaboratively across a national platform, they provide strategic advice and support to clients in avoiding, managing, resolving and, if necessary, litigating tax disputes.
  • Climate Change Initiatives: Selected Recent Changes and the Application of Existing Tax Principles to Clean Energy—Part 1
    Articles / January 04, 2024
    Greg Johnson, Wesley Novotny and Brendan Sigalet write for the Resource Sector Taxation journal on Federal tax policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by incentivizing clean energy technologies. The article reviews various proposed initiatives and existing incentives, emphasizing their integration with existing legislation and the importance of providing certainty to businesses making investment decisions.
  • Employee Ownership Trusts—Improved Tax Incentives Announced
    Blog / November 24, 2023
    The Canadian Department of Finance introduced draft legislation in the 2023 Canadian Federal Budget (Budget 2023) to create employee ownership trusts (EOTs) to facilitate the transfer of a business to the employees of the business. We provided an overview of the rules initially proposed in Budget 2023 in Employee Ownership Trusts—A Useful Tool for Employee Business Ownership?, and recommended various revisions to the proposed rules to improve the tax incentives and ease some of the conditions required to qualify for EOT treatment. The Department of Finance released revised EOT legislation on August 4, 2023, addressing some of our concerns but not the big one—the revised EOT legislation still contained minimal tax incentives.
  • Pension Investment Association of Canada Tax Conference
    Speaking Engagements / October 24, 2023
    Wesley Novotny and Greg Johnson presented at the 2022 PIAC (Pension Investment Association of Canada) Tax Conference on “Tax-exempt status under paragraph 149(1)(o.2)”. 
  • Calgary Tax Dispute Resolution: From Cradle to (Successful) Completion
    Event / September 28, 2023
    This event will provide invaluable insights into navigating the intricate landscape of tax disputes. It covers topics listed in the agenda highlights below. At this event, our team of seasoned experts will share their deep insights and practical strategies to enable you to tackle complex tax challenges. With annual audits conducted by CRA auditors and close scrutiny of every significant corporate transaction or event, it is crucial for in-house tax professionals and corporate executives in the C-Suite to remain vigilant about reputational risk issues and potential tax liabilities because the Canada Revenue Agency conducts frequent tax audits and closely scrutinizes corporate transactions. This scrutiny will only increase because Parliament has recently enacted new mandatory reporting rules which will require more disclosure than was previously required. Agenda Highlights
  • Employee Ownership Trusts—A Useful Tool for Employee Business Ownership?
    Blog / May 01, 2023
    There is a growing international movement to increase employee ownership of businesses. Some jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom and the United States have developed tax rules and incentives to facilitate business ownership by trusts created for the benefit of a business's employees.
  • 2022 Canadian Tax Foundation National Conference
    Speaking Engagements / November 28, 2022
    Wesley Novotny presented at the 2022 Canadian Tax Foundation National Conference on An Update on Pension Funds and Other Tax Exempt Entities with a Focus on Cross Border Investments, alongside co-presenters Scott Bodie, Alberta Investment Management Corporation, Carla Hannemann-Stirrat, KPMG Law LLP, Neil Marcovitz, British Columbia Investment Management Corporation, and Robert Medves, KPMG LLP.
  • Tax-exempt Status Under Paragraph 149(1)(o.2)
    Speaking Engagements / October 24, 2022
    Wes Novotny and Greg Johnson were featured speakers on Tax-exempt Status Under Paragraph 149(1)(o.2) at the Pension Investment Association of Canada's Tax Conference. The conference was hosted in Toronto on October 24 and 25 and offered tax professionals discussions and seminars on current tax issues impacting the pension industry.
  • Bennett Jones on Tax Disputes - February 2022
    Articles / February 10, 2022
    The 18th edition of Bennett Jones on Tax Disputes, published on Taxnet Pro by Thomson Reuters, includes (1) an overview of the Canadian Federal Court's rejection of late election in the case of Denso Manufacturing Canada, Inc. v Canada; and (2) a look at the CRA's shift towards electronic communication and the potential fall-out of missing their emails. The publication also outlines cases of note and the litigation status of current key cases.
  • 42nd Agriculture Update for Professionals
    Speaking Engagements / November 24, 2021
    Wesley Novotny presented at the 42nd Agriculture Update for Professionals on farm succession planning.
  • Bennett Jones on Tax Disputes
    Articles / April 10, 2019
    The inaugural edition of Bennett Jones on Tax Disputes, published on Taxnet Pro by Thomson Reuters, includes Costs Awards under the Tax Court of Canada General Procedure Rules – Recent Trends, Orders for Consolidation and Common Hearings Under Tax Court Rule 26, Cases of Note and Appeals Tables.
  • Orders for Consolidation and Common Hearings Under Tax Court Rule 26
    Updates / January 04, 2019
    Overview of Rule 26 Section 26 of the Tax Court of Canada Rules (General Procedure)1 (the "Tax Court Rules"), referred to as "Rule 26", can be useful where multiple taxpayers are involved in related matters and are simultaneously appealing their respective assessments before the Tax Court, or where a single taxpayer has separately appealed different reassessments. Rule 26 provides litigants before the Tax Court with the ability to consolidate two or more proceedings, have the proceedings heard at the same time or sequentially, or to stay a proceeding until the determination of another. The rule provides: When Proceedings May be Consolidated [26]  Where two or more proceedings are pending in the Court and: (a) they have in common a question of law or fact or mixed law and fact arising out of one and the same transaction or occurrence or series of transactions or occurrences; or (b) for any other reason, a direction ought to be made under this section; the Court may direct that; (c) the proceedings be consolidated or heard at the same time or one immediately after the other; or (d) any of the proceedings be stayed until the determination of any other of them. The underlying policy of Rule 26 is to avoid a multiplicity of proceedings, to promote expeditious and inexpensive determination of those proceedings, and to avoid inconsistent judicial findings. While the application of Rule 26 is technically limited to appeals involving the General Procedure, its application has been extended to appeals under the Informal Procedure.2
  • Budget 2017: Changes to Canadian Exploration Expense and Flow-Through Shares
    Updates / March 24, 2017
    Canadian exploration expenses (CEE) are certain types of expenses incurred by oil and gas, mining and renewable energy corporations. CEE is 100 percent deductible in the year the expense are incurred. Certain types of CEE also qualify for renunciation to investors under the flow-through share rules contained in the Act.  With the exception of expenses related to the acquisition of Canadian resource property (which generally would be Canadian oil and gas property expense), most other oil and gas related expenses (other than tangible costs) qualify as Canadian development expenses (CDE).  CDE is deductible at 30 percent on a declining balance basis. CDE can also be renounced under the flow-through share rules, but because of the reduced rate of deduction, is significantly less desirable for investors.
  • Canadian Tax Foundation Annual Conference (2016)
    Speaking Engagements / November 27, 2016
    Greg Johnson and Wes Novotny to present at the Canadian Tax Foundation 68th annual conference in Calgary: "An Update on Flow-through Shares in the Energy Sector" at Calgary, Alberta.
  • Canadian Petroleum Tax Society September Luncheon
    Speaking Engagements / September 22, 2016
    Greg Johnson and Wes Novotny presented at the Canadian Petroleum Tax Society (CPTS) September Luncheon on "Current Issues for Flow Through Shares" at Calgary, Alberta.
  • Bennett Jones Names Eight New Partners
    Announcements / March 07, 2016
    Bennett Jones LLP is pleased to announce that eight lawyers have been admitted to the partnership.
  • Back-to-Back Loan Update
    Speaking Engagements / June 10, 2015
    Jay Winters and Wesley Novotny presented "Back-to-Back Loan Update" at the 2015 Canadian Petroleum Tax Society Annual Conference in Calgary.
  • The ‘Special Work Site' and ‘Remote Location' Exemptions
    Articles / December 31, 2014
    Jay Winters and Wesley Novotny authored "The ‘Special Work Site' and ‘Remote Location' Exemptions", 2014 Prairie Provinces Tax Conference (Toronto: Canadian Tax Foundation, 2014), 10: 1-34.
  • Tax Effective Use by Canadian Online Retailers of Bermuda Operations for International Expansion
    Updates / June 10, 2014
    The growth of online retail sales has globally outstripped the growth of all other retail channels, including during the last recession. For example, in England during 2012, it has been estimated that online e-tail grew by an average of 17 percent, compared to all other retail growth in England of approximately 2.1 percent during the same period. In 2012, Canadian companies sold $122 billion of goods and services over the Internet, and in 2012, 11 percent of Canadian firms sold their goods and services online, compared to only seven percent in 2011. In the U.S., there are 263 million Internet users and more than 100 million Americans regularly purchasing goods online. Forbes estimates that by 2017, U.S. online retail sales will reach $370 billion.
  • 2014 Prairie Provinces Tax Conference
    Speaking Engagements / May 26, 2014
    Jay Winters and Wesley Novotny present, "The 'Special Work Site' and 'Remote Location' Exemptions," at the 2014 Prairie Provinces Tax Conference in Saskatoon, SK.
  • Recent Resource Taxation Developments
    Speaking Engagements / May 21, 2014
    Greg Johnson and Wes Novotny present "Recent Resource Taxation Developments" at the Canadian Petroleum Tax Society in Calgary.
  • Acquisitions of Control Under the Income Tax Act - Recent Developments
    Articles / December 31, 2013
    J. Scott Bodie and Wesley R. Novotny authored "Acquisitions of Control Under the Income Tax Act - Recent Developments", 2013 Prairie Provinces Tax Conference (Toronto: Canadian Tax Foundation, 2013), 6: 1-27.
  • Update on the Change of Control Rules
    Speaking Engagements / May 01, 2013
    Scott Bodie and Wesley Novotny presented “Update on the Change of Control Rules” at the 2013 Prairie Provinces Canadian Tax Foundation Conference in Edmonton, Alberta.
  • Ensuring Shares of Your Family Farm Corporation Qualify for the Capital Gains Exemption and Recent Caselaw Regarding the Farm Loss Deduction
    Speaking Engagements / March 13, 2013
    Scott Bodie and Wesley Novotny presented "Ensuring Shares of Your Family Farm Corporation Qualify for the Capital Gains Exemption and Recent Caselaw Regarding the Farm Loss Deduction" at the Federated Press Conference on Farm Taxation in Calgary, Alberta.
  • Cross Border Investment in Canada - Recent Amendments to the Definition of Taxable Canadian Property
    Speaking Engagements / October 19, 2010
    Greg Johnson and Wesley Novotny presented "Cross Border Investment in Canada - Recent Amendments to the Definition of Taxable Canadian Property" at the Canadian Tax Society Breakfast Speaker Series in Calgary, Alberta.