In HMRC v Labeikis and others [2024] EWHC 2009 (KB) (7 August) the High Court allowed HMRC’s appeal against a previous rejection of its applications to strike out taxpayers’ Part 8 claims as an abuse of process. The correct method of raising issues of public law as the Part 8 claims attempted to do was by judicial review. In addition the court’s proper role was to adjudicate on real and specific disputes and not to provide guidance to taxpayers.
The respondents were a group of employees and a group of self-employed individuals all of whom had received loans. The respondents had issued Part 8 claims which centred on the compatibility of the loan charge specifically that the loan charge was contrary to the EU’s fundamental principle of freedom of establishment.
HMRC had applied to the High Court for orders to either decline jurisdiction to hear...