Adrienne Woodyard

Adrienne Woodyard

Partner
I highly recommend Adrienne Woodyard for anyone seeking assistance with tax litigation.
client feedback, Chambers Canada
About

Adrienne’s practice is primarily focused on tax dispute resolution/litigation. She advocates on behalf of taxpayers in disputes with the Canada Revenue Agency and the Ontario Ministry of Finance, and, where disputes cannot be resolved at the administrative level, she represents them in the Tax Court of Canada and the Federal Court of Appeal. Adrienne also advises clients regularly on a wide variety of tax compliance issues and represents clients who wish to participate in the CRA’s Voluntary Disclosures Program, an amnesty program designed to allow taxpayers to correct errors or omissions in their past tax returns, as well as clients seeking a waiver or reduction from penalty and interest under the CRA’s Taxpayer Relief program. She has extensive knowledge of income tax, payroll, GST/HST, retail sales tax and excise tax matters, and her clients include multinational corporations, privately held and owner-operated enterprises, estates and trusts, entrepreneurs, executives, not-for-profit corporations and registered charities.

Adrienne currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Advocates’ Society, as well as the editorial board of the Tax Litigation Journal (Federated Press). She has been quoted and has written extensively on various tax matters, including best practices for retention of tax-related business records and managing CRA audits, transfer pricing reviews, tax issues relevant to cross-border employee travel, offshore tax evasion, CRA challenges to charitable donation programs and the tax treatment of damage awards.

Adrienne obtained her law degree from Queen’s University, where she received the McDougall-Watson Memorial Award for her work with the Queen’s Legal Aid Society and was an editor of the Queen’s Law Review. She was called to the Ontario bar in 2000. Prior to attending Queen’s, Adrienne studied English and Psychology at Wilfrid Laurier University, and was awarded the Lieutenant Governor’s Academic Medal for achieving the highest average in her graduating class.

Bar admissionsOntario, 2000
Languages
  • English
Education
  • LL.B., Queen's University, 1998
  • B.A., Wilfrid Laurier University, 1994

Awards

  • Chambers Global (Tax: Litigation), 2024
  • Chambers Canada (Tax: Litigation), 2023-2024
  • Best Lawyers in Canada (Tax Law), 2021-2024
  • Who's Who Legal: Canada (Corporate Tax), 2023
  • McDougall-Watson Memorial Award, Queen's Legal Aid Society
  • Lieutenant Governor's Academic Medal, Wilfrid Laurier University,
  • Alumni Bronze Medals, Wilfrid Laurier University

Publications

Seminars

  • Instructor, Examinations for Discovery: Building Block Series, The Advocates’ Society, January 16, 2024
  • Presenter, Evidence Workshop: 40th Anniversary of the Tax Court of Canada, Canadian Tax Foundation / Tax Court of Canada, October 2023
  • Mentor, “How to Manage Your Practice and Not Let It Manage You,” The Advocates’ Society, November 2, 2022
  • Presenter, “Current Cases,” Canadian Tax Foundation Annual Conference, November 2022
  • Co-chair, "Tax Litigation", The Advocates' Society, February 18, 2022
  • Panelist, "Assessing Your Case: Developing a Winning Cross-Examination Strategy”, Preparation Series: Cross-Examination, The Advocates’ Society, June 1, 2021 
  • Speaker, "Panel Discussion Related to the Technology Sector", 2020 US-Canada Joint Meeting of the ‎International Fiscal Association, February 26, 2020
  • Speaker, "Revisiting Taxpayer Relief and Ministerial Discretion", Ontario Tax Conference & Webcast, Canadian Tax Foundation, October 29, 2019
  • Speaker, "Ontario Tax Conference & Webcast," Canadian Tax Foundation, October 29, 2019
  • Co-chair, "Evidence for Litigators," The Advocates' Society, Nov 29, 2018
  • Instructor, "Examination-in-Chief Skills Workshop," Civil Litigation Skills Certificate Program, The Advocates' Society, Aug 15, 2018
  • Speaker, "Professionalism and Ethical Issues for Tax Lawyers," Ontario Bar Association, December 5, 2017
  • Speaker, “A Potpourri of Issues in the Administration and Enforcement of the ITA,” Canadian Tax Foundation Annual Conference, Nov 21, 2017
  • Mentor, “Practical Advice on Succeeding as a Young Tax Lawyer,” Canadian Bar Association, October 26, 2017
  • Speaker, "Key Considerations When Deciding to Use an Expert," Tax Litigation: Tax Experts, The Advocates' Society, December 14, 2017
  • Mentor, "Session Mentor," 7th Biennial Women in Litigation Symposium, October 27, 2017
  • Interview, "Tax penalties and how to apply for relief," Investment Executive, September 24, 2017
  • Interview, "Staying clear of tax mistakes and penalties," Investment Executive, September 17, 2017
  • Interview, "Don’t let tax documentation go wrong," Investment Executive, September 10, 2017
  • Interview, "CRA audits: Risks, pitfalls and tips," Investment Executive, September 4, 2017
  • Presenter, "Tax primer for litigators," Law Society of Upper Canada, March 2017
  • Presenter, “Top Tax Tips,” DLA Piper (Canada) LLP Webinar, October 2016
  • Speaker, “Selected Issues in Tax Administration Relating to Assessing, Filings and Appeals,” Ontario Tax Conference, Canadian Tax Foundation, October 2016
  • Speaker, “When the Tax Man Calls,” Wolters Kluwer Canada, October 2016
  • Speaker, “Taxation for General Practitioners,” Law Society of Upper Canada, September 2016
  • Speaker, “Practical Advice for Dealing with Tax Authorities,” OBA Taxation Law, Tax Dispute Resolution Essentials Series, April 2016
  • Speaker, “Tax Issues for Civil Litigators,” OBA Annual Institute 2016, February 2016
  • Speaker, Toronto Employment and Labour Law Conference, May 2015
  • Interview, “Taxes While Abroad?” CBC Radio (Metro Morning), 17 November 2014
  • Moderator and Presenter, "Privilege and File Management When Dealing with CRA Audits,” Law Society of Upper Canada, September 2014
  • Speaker, "Avoiding Critical Tax Traps for Litigators," Advocates' Society Spring Symposium, May 12, 2011

Media Mentions

Other Activities

  • Associate Editor, Queen's Law Journal 1996 - 1998
  • Chair, Toronto / Montreal Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Working Group, DLA Piper (Canada)
  • Member, National DE&I Committee, DLA Piper (Canada)
  • Volunteer, Pro Bono Ontario Hotline
  • Chair, DLA Piper Toronto Student Committee, 2015-2019

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Director, The Advocates' Society, June 2018 -2022
  • Editorial Board, Tax Litigation Journal, Thomson Reuters
  • Canadian Tax Foundation
  • Ontario Bar Association Tax Executive, 2015-2017
  • Law Society of Ontario
  • National Tax Litigation Study Group
  • Toronto Tax Study Group

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