Amid rising economic tensions between the U.S. and Canada, Assistant Professor Preetika Joshi warns that President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 100 per cent tariffs could trigger far‑reaching consequences on both sides of the border. Joshi notes that while the move is framed as a deterrent against Canada serving as a conduit for Chinese goods, the economic damage would not be one‑sided.
When the province of Ontario ran an anti-tariff advertisement that featured voice-over from a 1987 speech by US President Ronald Reagan, it hit a little too close to home for current President Donald Trump. Trump threatened additional tariffs on Canada and demanded the ad campaign end. “If this was a sitcom, we’d be laughing, but it’s not,” says Preetika Joshi, Assistant Professor of Accounting at McGill Desautels.

What does accounting have to do with sustainability? Essentially, everything. Just as research and regulations around sustainability have expanded in recent years, so has sustainability accounting, focusing on activities of an organization that have a direct impact on its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aspects.

On Friday, May 13, members of the Desautels Faculty of Management gathered to celebrate the innovative and impactful research conducted by its scholars.
Fifteen professors were on hand to deliver two-minute presentations of their most interesting and research.
Before jumping into the presentations, Dean Yolande Chan took the time to highlight this year's Desautels Faculty Scholar awardees. Congratulations to this year's awardees!

Authors: A.G. Huang, Hongping Tan, and R. Wermers
Publication: The Review of Financial Studies, Volume 33, Issue 10, October 2020, Pages 4627-4675.
Abstract:

Authors: M.T. Bradshaw, A.G. Huang, and Hongping Tan
Publication: Journal of Accounting Research, Volume 57, Issue 1, March 2019, Pages 85-120.

Author: Preetika Joshi
Publication: Journal of Accounting Research, Volume 58, Issue 2, May 2020, Pages 333-381.
Abstract:

Congratulations to Preetika Joshi, Assistant Professor in Accounting, who has been awarded the 2021 FRQSC New Academics Grant (Soutien à la recherche pour la relève professorale) for her project titled “Does Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Improve the Tax Enforcement Function?” (L’intelligence artificielle et l’apprentissage automatique améliorent-ils la fonction de mise en recouvrement de l’impôt ?”)

Authors: E. Devos, E. Devos, H. Li and Desmond Tsang
Publication: The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Forthcoming
Abstract:

Congratulations to Desmond Tsang, Associate Professor in Accounting, whose paper won Best-in-Track Award for Real Estate at the 2021 Academy of Finance Conference
Professor Tsang’s paper “Corporate Relocation and Housing Market Spillovers” with co-authors Maggie Hu and Wayne Xinwei Wan has won the Best-in-Track Award for Real Estate and was recognized during the 34th Annual Academy of Finance Conference.

Between April and September 20, 53 publicly-held Canadian companies paid out nearly $2 billion to their shareholders despite receiving more than $10 million in federal assistance through the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS). Prof. Preetika Joshi proposes policy changes that will direct future subsidies to the companies that need them most. Learn more

The news that more than 60 publicly held Canadian firms have received the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) while continuing to pay out dividends has sharply divided public opinion this week. Professor Preetika Joshi enters the debate, pointing to the complexity of balancing profit with corporate responsibility during a crisis.

A recent investigation reveals that as 68 publicly-traded Canadian companies received at least $1.3 billion government assistance through the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), they paid out more than $5 billion in dividends during the same time period. According to Professor Preetika Joshi, certain countries were more discerning than others when distributing corporate subsidies.

The Desautels Faculty of Management congratulates Professor Julia Scott for being recognized with CPA Ontario’s coveted FCPA designation. The FCPA distinction is reserved for those at the pinnacle of their careers; it is the highest honour that can be bestowed on a member.

Companies are experiencing increased pressure to open their tax affairs to public scrutiny. But for Assistant Professor Preetika Joshi, it is crucial to first determine how tax transparency will affect corporate behaviour in the long term.
