Court cases
CUB Australia Holding
Pty Ltd v FC of T
On February 2 2021, Moshinski J of the Federal Court of Australia handed down judgment in
CUB Australia Holding Pty Ltd v FC of T [2021] FCA 43. This was a dispute involving a formal statutory notice from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) demanding certain information, and the application of legal professional privilege.
The ATO has been on record since 2018 with ‘concerns’ about whether legal professional privilege is being properly claimed in disputes. In particular, it refers to disputes with legal practitioners who operate in firms that are ‘multi-disciplinary’ or firms that also provide services other than legal services (see Attachment A to the ‘National Tax Liaison Group key messages November 30 2018’ minutes” where the ATO concerns are summarised).