Find a Barrister  Search site

Christopher Vajda QC's Library

The Rank Group v The Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

The First-Tier Tax Tribunal gave judgment recently on the second stage of the appeal by Rank Group plc ("Rank") against the refusal by HMRC to repay VAT paid on income from slot machines ("the slots appeal"). The Tribunal ruled in favour of Rank ...

R (TNT Post UK Ltd) v HMRC

This case concerned the interpretation of an exemption from VAT in relation to postal services. Proceedings were brought by TNT Post UK Limited ("TNT Post") against Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs ("HMRC") and Royal Mail Group Limited ("Royal ...

Revenue and Customs Comrs v Procter & Gamble [2009] EWCA Civ 407

With uncanny foresight, (or in testament to the effectiveness of Procter & Gamble's marketing hook), an earlier edition of this Journal commented on the judgment of the VAT & Duties Tribunal in this case that "Once you pop, the fun ...

State aid and the grant of telecoms licences

On 2 April 2009, the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") handed down judgment in Case C-431/07 P Bouygues SA v Commission.  The ECJ upheld the judgment of the Court of First Instance ("CFI"). ...

National Grid plc v Gas and Electricity Markets Authority (Capital Meters Ltd and Siemens plc and anr intervening)

The Competition Appeal Tribunal (the 'CAT') has recently decided National Grid's appeal against a finding by Ofgem that it had abused its position of dominance in the market for the provision of domestic gas ...

Conde Nast and Fleming

The judgment of the House of Lords in Fleming and Condé Nast1 is the latest instalment of the litigation stemming from the introduction of the three-year caps in 1996 and 1997.  The issue for the House was how to deal ...

Bouygues Dials the Wrong Number in State Aid Challenge

On 6 June 2000, the French Government announced its intention of allocating four licences for the operation of third generation ("3G") mobile phones in France.  On 18 August 2000, the Autorité de régulation des ...

The End of the Line for the Mobile Telecoms Operators and their VAT Refund Claims?

The ECJ has held that a Member State's auction of 3G licences does not constitute an economic activity and so falls outside the scope of the Sixth Directive.  In finding that claims by successful bidders for recovery of ...

Fairness in Context

The application of rules of procedural fairness to the decision-making and review procedures of the Coal Authority was considered by the Administrative Court in Abbey Mine Limited v The Coal ...

European Court of Justice Rules on Barrister Language Test

English barrister Graham Wilson last week won a case he brought against the local Bar Council (Ordre des Avocats du Barreau du Luxembourg) in the European Court of Justice.  The court's decision ruled that the Council had no right to oblige ...

Banks, Universities and Hospitals: the Limits to Tax Avoidance

On 21 February 2006, the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") delivered its long awaited judgments in three related VAT cases: Halifax, University of Huddersfield and BUPA.  It doing so, it provided ...

Marks and Spencer - Limiting Shopping in Tax Losses

On 13 December 2005 the ECJ delivered its eagerly awaited judgment in Case C-446/03 Marks and Spencer plc v Halsey on the extent to which a Member State may, compatibly with Community law, restrict the applicability of group relief to losses ...

The Racecourse Association Ahead at the Finish Line

The Competition Appeal Tribunal's ("CAT") recent judgment in The Racecourse Association v OFT [2005] CAT 29 raises the important issue of the circumstances in which joint selling might be considered anti-competitive.  It is ...

VAT and EC Law: the Principle of Non-Discrimination

The importance of looking to the Sixth Directive, in almost every dispute involving the interpretation of VAT law, is now widely appreciated, The Directive will, alongside the VAT Act, often be a first point of reference.  The general ...

Appeals Court Overturns OFT Decision

In the first case to consider the UK's new merger regime established by the Enterprise Act 2002 - Office of Fair Trading v. IBA Health - the Court of Appeal has provided guidance on two important issues of principle.  It is a case ...

Liability for Breach of Community Law: a Survey of the ECJ Cases Post Factortame

My talk aims to paint the post-Factortame picture with a relatively broad brush.  It is intended to provide a overview of some of the key cases that have driven the development of the principle of state ...

VAT: Unjust Enrichment and Unfair Treatment

The High Court has recently considered two unlikely bedfellows of unjust enrichment and unfair treatment, in the Commrs of Customs & Excise v National Westminster Bank plc [2003] STC 1072 case. The conclusion reached was in Customs' ...

Unlawful State Aid: What is it and what are its legal consequences?

This article discusses how the EC state aid regime deals with the grant of unlawful state aid. This is an important issue given the frequency that aids are granted by Member States in breach of the procedural rules laid down.  ...

Decentralisation in EC State Aid Law

Traditionally the operation and administration of state aid has been very centralised.  There is an obligation on Member States to pre-notify proposed new state aid to the European Commission under Article 88(3) of the EC Treaty ...

Direct Tax: Recent Developments in the ECJ

Which Rules Rule?

Kingfisher Fails to Replicate The Argos Gift Voucher

The Domestic Merger Regime under The Enterprise Act - Article published by Legal Week 01 April 2004