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HMRC v Post Prudential Closure Notice Group Litigation

Every time I report on a new judgement on the subject of the potential incompatibility of UK and EU law I wonder whether this will be the final time that I have to refer to the matter. But cases continue to be heard and, as Lady Justice Falk states at the beginning of her impressive judgement here, there are still many issues to be resolved.

It has long been established that the UK system of taxation of foreign dividends received by companies who owned less than 10% of the paying company’s shares was incompatible with EU law. The UK legislation only allowed relief for withholding tax, but a series of judgements has made it clear that relief should also be given for underlying tax ― ie the tax paid by the companies which paid the dividend. This case is about the process for giving that relief.

The position is, as might be imagined, highly complex and in the course of the judgement some 14 different