Although the legislative intent for s. 162(2.1) was to have a non-resident corporation pay an alternative penalty when it had no liability for income tax (para. 28), "those charged with implementing the legislative plan failed in their task" (para. 38). Nöel, J.A. stated (at para. 32):
[W]hile a contextual and purposive analysis is useful in identifying amongst the meanings which a word (or phrase) can have the one that best reflects Parliamentary intent, it cannot be used to give the legislative language a meaning which it cannot bear ...