VAT Relief for Bad Debts: Res Judicata and Issue Estoppel in British Telecommunications Plc v Revenue And Customs

• The case involves a claim for relief for bad debts in relation to VAT.
• The issue of whether the judgment of the Court of Appeal finally resolved all issues is being considered.
• Cause of action estoppel and issue estoppel are discussed.
• The Caffoor principle, which limits the application of issue estoppel in tax appeals, is mentioned.
• The FTT has the discretion to strike out an appeal on the grounds of abuse of process.
• BT is seeking to redetermine matters relating to the same accounting periods in the same proceedings.
• The principle of nemo debet bis vexari pro una et eadem causa is mentioned.
• The Court of Appeal’s decision binds BT and BT is estopped from continuing to pursue certain issues.
• It would be an abuse of process for BT to continue pursuing the s80 point.

Source: bailii.org

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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