Jonathan Hare, Stephen Morse (PwC) and Peter Halford (PwC Legal) answer the key questions on the European Commission’s investigations into alleged illegal state aid as a way of tacking perceived corporate tax avoidance.
Adam Craggs and Robert Waterson (RPC) examine Sanderson, the latest discovery case in which the courts have attributed to the ‘hypothetical officer’ very little knowledge, notwithstanding extensive information having been made available to HMRC.
Rupert Shiers (Hogan Lovells) comments on key areas where HMRC will focus in 2016 and where the law regulating HMRC and tax disputes will be developed.
FII Group Litigation – grant of summary judgment
BDO, the liquidator in Murray Group Holdings (better known as ‘the Rangers case’), has submitted its appeal against the Court of Session’s ruling of 4 November 2015 on the company’s use of EBTs, seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Tax avoidance and retrospective legislation
According to research by Thomson Reuters, companies in the FTSE 100 have set aside £1.66bn to cover the cost of tax litigation – a fall of 31% from the £2.39bn set aside for tax litigation purposes by FTSE 100 companies in 2014 – with one company’s tax litigation provisions making up the bulk of
The law and practice on discovery assessments has lost its balance and, along with it, any realistic protection for the taxpayer, writes Peter Vaines.