Lance Milligan v The Commissioners for HMRC
Decision date: 1 May 2025
Neutral citation: [2025] UKFTT 498 (TC)
Overall AI summary confidence: high
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 case concerned Mr Lance Milligan’s appeal against nine discovery assessments for tax years 2000/01–2008/09 and a penalty for failure to file self‑assessment returns. The Tribunal found notices to file had been sent, concluded the taxpayer’s behaviour in causing the loss of tax was deliberate (though not dishonest), upheld the assessments (applying the 20‑year limit for earlier years and 6‑year for later years), rejected the reasonable excuse defence to the penalty, and dismissed the appeal. HMRC’s expense allowances and abatements were upheld.
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
The Tribunal treated a taxpayer’s deliberate non‑engagement with tax obligations (a “head in the sand” or blind‑eye approach) as satisfying the statutory requirement that the loss of tax was caused deliberately even where there was no finding of dishonesty. The Tribunal also treated prior advice to regularise tax affairs (e.g. from accountants) followed by continued inaction as marking the point at which any reasonable excuse is likely to have ceased.
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 decision suggests that evidence of postal difficulties alone will not necessarily excuse a long‑running failure to engage with tax obligations where other records indicate receipt of correspondence and capacity to handle administrative tasks. It also indicates that untested retrospective accountant statements and late expense apportionments may be insufficient to displace HMRC estimates absent contemporaneous records.