This is a brief heads up for those of you who have been awaiting this appeal judgment as I have. Yesterday the Full Federal Court dismissed the Commissioner’s appeal in Commissioner of Taxation v Australian Building Systems Pty Ltd (in liq) [2014] FCAFC 133. In short, the judgment confirmed that s 254(1)(d) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (Cth) (the ITAA) only imposes an obligation upon “trustees” (including liquidators) to retain funds to pay an anticipated CGT liability once a relevant tax assessment has issued.

Edmonds J who wrote the principal judgment went so far as to say that he was “firmly of the view” that the primary judge was correct in that conclusion (at [4]). For my discussion of the first instance decision of Logan J, see my earlier post here. There is more to be said about the significance of this conclusion of the Full Federal Court, which some of you will have heard me speak about following the first instance decision. My review of this appeal judgment to follow.  ***Time has beaten me as Christmas now approaches. My review is part-written, and will now follow in the New Year.