Julian Lowe v The Commissioners for HMRC

Decision date: 12 September 2024

Neutral citation: [2024] UKFTT 826 (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

HMRC issued discovery assessments dated 11 April 2023 for tax years 2017/18–2020/21 claiming unpaid tax from the appellant’s self-assessed expenses. The First-tier Tribunal found HMRC had not made a valid discovery under s29 TMA because there was no evidence the assessing officer actually believed the available information pointed to an insufficiency of tax, nor that such a belief was one a reasonable officer could form; the appeal was allowed and the assessments set aside.

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

A valid discovery assessment under s29 TMA requires (1) evidence that an actual officer subjectively believed the available information pointed to an insufficiency of tax and (2) that this belief was one a reasonable officer could form (the objective limb). Where HMRC relies only on a written witness statement and did not call the assessing officer for oral evidence, it is insufficient on the balance of probabilities to infer a valid discovery merely from the fact assessments were issued.

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 observed that, in a self-assessment regime, it is ordinarily appropriate for HMRC to request corroborating information before issuing discovery assessments, and that a witness statement signed with a statement of truth has limited probative value if the witness does not give oral evidence and cannot be cross-examined.

Source links

Judgment page Judgment PDF Judgment XML