William House

Will is a Partner with KPMG Law LLP in the Vancouver office. Will advises on all aspects of income tax law with a focus on corporate reorganizations as well as divestitures and mergers & acquisitions.  He provides practical advice, tailored to his clients’ business and commercial needs and is known for finding creative and innovative solutions to achieve tax-efficient results.   

Will is a member of KPMG in Canada’s national Corporate Reorganizations & Divestitures working group as well as the national Mandatory Disclosures working group.

Will is a frequent writer and speaker on taxation matters, including for the Canadian Tax Foundation, and is a professional development instructor for the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia.

Professional and Industry Experience

Will works with both public and private companies across all areas and industries and has particularly significant real estate, restaurant, and green energy industry knowledge.  Will frequently advises on corporate reorganizations, including safe income calculations and planning, paragraph 55(3)(a) related party divisive reorganizations, paragraph 55(3)(b) “butterfly” transactions, tax basis “bump” planning, wind-up and merger transactions, loss utilization transactions, debt forgiveness analysis and planning, vendor sell-side divestiture planning and the general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR).

Recent Teaching Experience

• CPA BC, course author and lecturer, Taxation of Partnerships
• CPA BC, course author and lecturer, Taxation of Corporate Restructuring – Fundamentals
• CPA Canada, facilitator, In-Depth Tax Course Part III

Recent Presentations and Publications

• “Safe Income, Dividends and Divisive Reorganizations – CRA Policy and Updates”, presentation, Canadian Petroleum Tax Society, 2024
• “BC Butterfly Case Study” panelist and paper for Canadian Tax Foundation BC Tax Conference, 2023
• “Notifiable and Reportable Transactions: The 5 Ws” presentation, Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, 2023
• “Avoiding a Disposition on the Amendment of Share Rights and Restrictions”, Canadian Tax Focus (Toronto: Canadian Tax Foundation 2023)
• “Proposed Reportable and Notifiable Transaction Rules: Discussion and Application” panelist and paper for Canadian Tax Foundation YP Virtual Tax Conference, 2022.
• “Granting an Option to Acquire an Interest in a Partnership”, Canadian Tax Focus (Toronto: Canadian Tax Foundation 2022)