With a number of recent Federal Court decisions and the release of draft protocols by the Australian Taxation Office, the past 12 months have seen significant developments in the area of legal professional privilege (LPP) impacting upon the rights of taxpayers to claim LPP over tax advice and communications with their advisers. Taxpayers are at risk of having to disclose confidential advice and communications that they may have thought to be protected by LPP or concede claims due to the costs involved in defending those claims.
This paper examines:
- The back story and history of LPP in tax
- The recent Federal Court decisions and implications going forward
- The ATO LPP protocols and interplay with the recent decisions
- Practical steps that can be followed to preserve LPP and avoid costly disputes with the ATO