Title
Barriers to Avoidance: Recent Legislative and Judicial Developments in Common Law Jurisdictions
Abstract
Tax avoidance activity, like tax evasion, is neither unique to any one country nor a purely modern problem. It has been around, in varying degrees, wherever taxes have been levied. Many argue, however, that the scale of tax avoidance activity has grown significantly in more recent decades. This paper explores the argument that some of the major common law jurisdictions face a greater threat than ever before, and that the integrity of the tax bases in those countries is being steadily eroded by sustained avoidance activity. The view is taken – hardly contentious – that there has been a growth in avoidance activity in recent decades. The paper then considers some of the legislative, judicial and administrative responses to such growing threats. It is contended that the combined forces of the legislature, the judiciary and the administration have at their disposal a veritable battery of weapons that is more than capable of dealing with the onslaught of these so-called fiscal and moral termites.
Disciplines
Tax Law
Date of this Version
March 2007
Recommended Citation
Chris Evans, "Barriers to Avoidance: Recent Legislative and Judicial Developments in Common Law Jurisdictions" (March 2007). University of New South Wales Faculty of Law Research Series. Working Paper 12.
http://law.bepress.com/unswwps-flrps/art12
Comments
This paper can also be referenced as [2007] UNSWLRS 12.