In Cole v R, 2024 TCC 64,
[1] The Appellant spent the better part of ten years trying to convince the Minister of National Revenue to remove over $240,000 added to her taxable income for the 2011 taxation year. Due to the passage of time, the Minister began treating the Appellant’s efforts as taxpayer relief requests to reassess beyond the statutory deadline. Unfortunately, the Minister did so without fully explaining the shift to the Appellant.
The CRA issued a fifth reassessment for 2011 after the expiry of the normal reassessment period. When the taxpayer attempted to file an appeal to the Tax Court in respect of the reassessment, the Department of Justice moved to quash the appeal on the basis that the taxpayer could not object to or appeal from it under subsection 165(1.2) of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The Tax Court quashed the appeal even though the CRA had told the appellant on several occasions after the expiry of the normal reassessment period that she could object to or appeal from the reassessments issued after that period.
[56] The above-referenced sections of the Act apply even though the CRA erroneously informed the Appellant that she could object and appeal. The law does not change even if the CRA errors led to the filing of the appeal.
