In Eclipse Film Partners No. 35 LLP, the Court of Appeal ruled that the film partnership’s activities did not constitute trading. Chris Bates and Judy Harrison (Norton Rose Fulbright) examine the judgment and consider the consequences
The Court of Appeal in Eclipse Film Partners No. 35 LLP [2015] 
EWCA Civ 95 (reported in Tax Journal 27 February 2015) has confirmed that a film partnership was not trading.
The Eclipse transaction involved individuals joining a partnership to acquire certain rights in feature films to be exploited via distribution agreements. Individuals would borrow to invest in a limited liability partnership (the LLP).
Once the individuals had contributed money to the LLP ...
