Trusted by the judiciary, government lawyers, prosecutors, and many leading counsel. Click here to request a subscription.
|
or click here to request site subscription to search and view all judgments |
High Court refuses judicial review of two letters from the Revenue Commissioners concerning liability for Capital Gains Tax, sent in advance of the completion of a transaction for the sale by a non-Irish company in shares of an Irish-registered company, on the grounds that: a) the letters were a non-binding preliminary view by the Commissioners in advance of a determination that would take place after the relevant transaction; and b) the fact that the vendor would have to pay withholding tax on foot of the letters did not affect the justiciability of the letters because the nature of withholding tax was that in many cases the taxpayer would not have a liability but the Revenue was protected from the difficulty of pursuing non-resident taxpayers.
Tax - revenue - whether letters from Revenue Commissioners were subject to judicial review - legal interpretations of tax legislation - refusal to accept that transaction was exempt from capital gains tax (CGT) - company resident in Spain - sale of shares in company registered in Ireland - whether shares derived their value or the greater part of their value from land in the state - withholding tax - s. 980 of the Taxes Consolidation Act, 1997 - leave granted to seek judicial review - proceedings admitted to Commercial List - non-resident taxpayer - disposal of land in the state - Section 29(3) of the 1997 Act - "(d) shares in a company deriving their value or the greater part of their value directly or indirectly from assets specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)" - whether Irish company had any estate or interest in land - definition of "land" - whether Interpretation Act 2005 applied to 1997 legislation where 1997 legislation included definition of "land" - exchange of correspondence - whether letters were justiciable - wording of letters - timing of letters - whether letters were "legally sterile".
Note: This is intended to be a fair and accurate report of a decision made public by a court of law. Any errors should be notified to the editor and will be dealt with accordingly.
The only fast reporting service for all Irish judgments over the past ten years. Click here to request a subscription.
Register Now