RA Logan & Co v Customs and Excise rev 1

This is an appeal by Mr R A Logan, Henry Couchlin and Carolyn Jayne Paton sometime the partners of a firm of Solicitors trading as R A Logan & Co in Ayr, against default surcharges imposed by the Commissioners for failure to make returns and pay VAT timeously. Only Mr Logan and Mr Couchlin are now partners.

Mr Logan did not attend the hearing. He had not contacted the Tribunal to say if he would appear. The Clerk had telephoned on 11/1/05 and been advised Mr Logan would call back on his return from Court. He did not. The Clerk telephoned again on 12/1/05 Mr�Logan was in Court but was contacted. The office rang back and asked for this Tribunal to be adjourned to another date and to advise the Tribunal all the returns were now complete.

The Commissioners objected as the Tribunal had been set down for several weeks, the evidence was not disputed, only the decision on it. No local reconsideration had ever been requested so the decision had only be considered once on evidence not before the Tribunal. In addition the Commissioners had proceeded civilly against the Appellants who had now made all returns and paid a substantial amount of all sums due.

I took the fact that Mr Logan is a Solicitor into consideration. He owes a duty to the Tribunal at least to be courteous, and is specially trained to recognise the authority of the Tribunal. I was not satisfied he had shown good cause for his failure to attend.

I am satisfied from the evidence that the trauma of the theft by the partner Mr Maxwell, as well as the failure of the Scottish Legal Aid Board is a reasonable excuse for failure to make returns or full payment for a period of two and a half years the quarter 10/99 due 30/11/99 to quarter 04/02.