Ann Godfrey v Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Decision date: 30 November 2010

Neutral citation: [2010] UKFTT 611 (TC)

Overall AI summary confidence: high

AI Notice: Any short overview, ratio decidendi summary or obiter dicta summary shown on this page is AI-generated, provided only to help users assess potential relevance more quickly, and may be wholly inaccurate. No liability is accepted for the accuracy of any such summary, regardless of any AI confidence rating shown. Users should check the underlying decision and obtain appropriate legal advice rather than relying on any summary.

Short overview

This short overview is intended to summarise the case, issues and outcome so far as they are supported by the judgment.

AI confidence in this short overview: high

This appeal concerned the capital gains tax treatment of a transfer of a half-share in 169 Conway Road from Mr Godfrey to the Appellant and whether an HMRC Self Assessment Statement amounted to a closure notice; the Tribunal found the Appellant’s return understated her gain and dismissed her appeals. The Tribunal held that spouse-transfer provisions in the TCGA treat the transferee as taking the transferor’s base cost (so the Appellant’s base cost derived from Mr Godfrey’s probate base cost), that the 28 Sep 2008 Statement was not a closure notice under s.28A TMA, and that the 5% surcharge under s.59C TMA was properly imposed without a reasonable excuse.

Ratio decidendi

This summary is intended to identify the ratio decidendi, meaning the legal reasons for deciding and the binding part of the decision.

AI confidence in this ratio decidendi summary: high

On a transfer between spouses living together, for CGT purposes the transferee is treated as acquiring the asset at a consideration which prevents the transferor suffering a gain or loss, so the transferee inherits the transferor’s base cost; and a document issued automatically and referring to a different tax year, without stating enquiry conclusions or amendments, does not meet the requirements of s.28A TMA to constitute a closure notice.

Obiter dicta

This summary is intended to identify obiter dicta, meaning observations made by the way that were not necessary to deciding the case and are not binding.

AI confidence in this obiter dicta summary: medium

The Tribunal commented that HMRC should make Statements of Account clear about the tax year to which they relate to avoid confusion where an enquiry is open, and noted that the Board has a discretion under s.59C(11) TMA to mitigate surcharges though the Tribunal itself cannot exercise that discretion.

Warning

- none

Source links

Judgment page Judgment PDF Judgment XML