Spiro J applied the presumption in s. 181(3) of the Business Corporations Act (NB) that an entry in a share register is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, proof that the holder shown in the register is the owner of the share, to find that the transfer of four properties (valued by Spiro J at over $2.4 million) by a corporation (“HGSL”) to the taxpayer, who was shown in the register as holding one of the 1000 shares, gave rise to a corresponding shareholder benefit under s. 15(1). Spiro J stated (at para. 52):
In light of his involvement in the corporate affairs of HGSL, the Appellant knew or ought to have known about that entry in the shareholders’ register. Had he believed he was not a shareholder of HGSL as of that date, he could have applied to rectify the register under section 168 of the NBBCA … .