Is a corporation a legal entity distinct from its shareholders?
Ontario, Canada
The following excerpt is from Granborough Developments Ltd. v. TGCB. Ltd., 2003 CanLII 4216 (ON SC):
In response to this argument I start with the proposition that, as a general rule, a corporation is a legal entity distinct from its shareholders. This separation is not absolute. See: Constitution Ins. Co. of Canada v. Kosmopoulos (1987), 1987 CanLII 75 (SCC), 34 D.L.R. (4th) 208 at p. 213, [1987] 1 S.C.R. 2. However, cases in which courts have ignored the corporate entity fall within headings usually associated with fraud or improper conduct.
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