Help › Legal › Act within your purposes
Act within your purposes
Showing British Columbia. Select your province in settings.
British Columbia stands fully covered: its own filings and guidance stand in the books beside the federal ones.
A society is formed for the purposes its constitution names, and its money is spent on those purposes.
A society is formed for the purposes its constitution names, and its money is spent on those purposes. Binds: BC societies.
The law’s own words
“A society must not … carry on any activity or exercise any power … that is contrary to its purposes, or … exercise any of the society’s powers in a manner inconsistent with those restrictions or purposes.”
BC Societies Act, s. 7(1) · Read it at BC Laws · Verified 2026-11-06
“A society must not distribute any of its money or other property other than (a) for full and valuable consideration, (b) in furtherance of the purposes of the society, (c) to a qualified recipient …”
BC Societies Act, s. 4 · Read it at BC Laws · Verified 2026-11-07
“Directors of a society who … authorizing a distribution, contrary to this Act or the bylaws, of money or other property are jointly and severally liable to restore to the society any money or other property that is so distributed and not otherwise recovered by the society.”
BC Societies Act, s. 59(1) · Read it at BC Laws · Verified 2026-11-07
“A society must not have, as one of its purposes, the carrying on of a business for profit or gain, but carrying on a business to advance or support the purposes of a society is not prohibited by this subsection.”
BC Societies Act, s. 2(2) · Read it at BC Laws · Verified 2026-11-06