Ingrid Simler QC wins the right to challenge tax deal with Goldman Sachs
Ingrid Simler QC of Devereux and Ben Jaffey of Blackstone Chambers, won the right for campaign group UK Uncut to challenge a so called ‘sweetheart’ deal struck with Goldman Sachs by HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) in 2010. It is alleged by the group that the deal enabled Goldman to avoid a multi-million-pound interest bill on unpaid NICs on payments to employees. Appearing at a High Court hearing in front of Mr Justice Simon, Ms Simler successfully argued that the group be allowed to proceed with a judicial review to decide if the deal was unlawful. Simon J ruled that the group had ‘an arguable case’ that should go to a full judicial review after hearing argument that HMRC failed to carry out its legal duty to renegotiate a deal with the bank after it emerged that a mistake had been made in relation to accrued interest on the outstanding NICs in the original talks. UK Uncut will now wait for the National Audit Office’s report into similar tax deals, which is being presented to Parliament today, 13 June and will be published on 14 June. The group will look to see if it should revise its case in light of that report and will then serve its amended grounds on HMRC within 28 days. HMRC will then have until 14 September to respond.
Ingrid is instructed by Richard Stein of Leigh Day.
This has been covered in:
- The Lawyer
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- The Independent
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