Sometimes taxpayers and their representatives have a hard time understanding the Canadian tax-dispute resolution system, like the poor accountant in Roman Miniotas (Romeo’s Plumbing & Heating) v R, 2011 TCC 43.
Tax Court class actions?
“Government Invites Comments on Proposals to Improve the Caseload Management of the Tax Court of Canada”. From the Finance press release:
Tax Court Jurisdiction
In Sorbara v. Canada (Attorney General), 2009 ONCA 506, the Ontario Court of Appeal held that the Ontario Superior Court of Justice does not have jurisdiction to hear an application relating to liabilty for GST under the Excise Tax Act (Canada). Parliament has given exclusive jurisdiction over that kind of question to the Tax Court of Canada. The appellant’s application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada was dismissed with costs (2009 CanLII 61389).
Chances of Winning at the Tax Court of Canada
If the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) challenges your return and you can’t afford a tax lawyer, how likely are you to win your case? Does hiring a lawyer help your chances?
Litigation
Tax Court litigation—or any other kind of litigation for that matter—is inherently unpredictable. Take Pigeau v. The Queen, 2009 TCC 582, for example. In that case, a key issue was the value of a property transferred from an individual to…
Limit on the right of appeal
In Skinner v. The Queen, 2009 TCC 269, the taxpayer had reported as income in 2001 a large shareholder loan that had not been repaid. In 2002, the taxpayer attempted to deduct the amount previously included in income because the shareholder loan had been repaid. The Minister reassessed to reduce the taxpayer’s income in 2001 by reversing the inclusion for the shareholder loan. The Minister also reassessed to deny the deduction in 2002 because, after giving effect to the reassessment for 2001, the requirements of paragraph 20(1)(j) had not been met. The taxpayer appealed to the Tax Court of Canada, but the appeal was dismissed essentially on procedural grounds.
Justice
It’s hard educating clients about the tax system and what they’re up against when disputing assessments. Clients will often complain not just about the assessments they are fighting but the attitude of the auditor, the delays caused by the CRA and the unfairness inherent in a tax system that only a very few understand really well. The taxpayers in Lauger v. The Queen, 2007 TCC 650, brought these complaints to Tax Court with them and asked the Court to do the Right Thing. To which the Court, in dismissing the appeals, responded “I must decide whether the assessments are well-founded or not”.
Valid Appeals and Objections
The Tax Court, in Kubbernus v. The Queen, 2009 TCC 311, confirmed that a taxpayer cannot file an appeal to the Court for a reassessment issued at the taxpayer’s request pursuant to the taxpayer relief provisions.
Local flavour
Here’s a case with some local flavour, of a sort: Dundurn Street Loffts Inc. v. The Queen, 2009 TCC 122.
Class action
Sorbara v. Canada (Attorney General), 2008 CanLII 61246 (ON S.C.) is an interesting case about class action proceedings and Tax Court appeals. The moral of the story: the Tax Court has exclusive jurisdiction over tax matters even though it (probably)…