In Williamson Tea the First-tier Tribunal found that a payment made by a purchaser of shares for a non-competition agreement by the seller was not derived from a disposal of goodwill but attracted SSE. Whilst on the particular facts – including the background to the negotiations, the requirements of the Indian takeover regulations and the taxpayer’s decision to withdraw from the market in India – this conclusion is understandable, it should not indicate a departure from the principle established by the Court of Appeal in Thorn EMI that a payment for a non-competition agreement may be derived from a separate chargeable asset, namely goodwill.
