This Month
Woodside accuses US government of ‘bad faith’ royalty grab
A lawsuit accuses department staff of sharing jokes on email about how they were going to make oil and gas companies pay more.
High Court grants ATO lifeline in $1b family trust case
The Tax Office can appeal in a dispute over the taxation of family trusts, placing a cloud over taxpayers’ ability to claim around $1 billion in refunds.
May
ATO loses $1b tax dispute with Alcoa as US companies play hardball
The ATO has lost its long-running stoush with the aluminium giant, just one of several battles Canberra is waging with US companies over tax.
Indonesian lawyer accuses Arnold Bloch Leibler of tax advice fail
Benny Tabalujan is suing the well-connected firm and says he would have relocated to Singapore if it had not been for its “wrong and incorrect” advice.
April
‘It’s all pervasive’: ATO’s blitz on family trusts threatens financial ruin
Wealthy families are being hit with bills for unpaid taxes and penalties worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
December 2024
Harsher penalties urged for PwC-style false privilege claims
The changing nature of law firms is making privilege claims more difficult to determine, a federal government discussion paper says.
The football club boss, drug-dealing director and $100m scam
A liquidator claims crane company boss Damon Hanlin may have controlled a tax fraud scheme that involved shadow directors and dishonest dealings.
November 2024
Tax Office tells CFOs to question their lawyers and accountants
Businesses should learn from the PwC tax scandal by testing the tax advice of accountants and lawyers to avoid being shamed in public, the ATO says.
October 2024
The documents MinRes directors didn’t see
Magic money, a disappearing depreciation claim – Chris Ellison’s excellent offshore adventure skips a few details.
August 2024
This philosophy-quoting taxman is going old school
Six months into the job, Tax Commissioner Rob Heferen has put businesses and individuals on notice he’s coming after $50.2 billion in money owed to the government.
May 2024
Lendlease tax whistleblower’s 12-year fight for vindication
Lendlease’s tax dispute could cost it at least $112m, but whistleblower Anthony Watson has lost his job, battled depression and is about to sell his family home.
Lendlease tax woes could trigger second profit downgrade
John Wylie’s Tanarra Capital is pushing for a seat on the Lendlease board, as the country’s largest property group faces the prospect of a damaging profit downgrade after tax officials handed it a $112 million bill.
April 2024
ATO told scam victim he owed $46k tax refund sent to fraudster
The victim of the scam was told he had to repay the money paid out to someone who had stolen his identity online.
Alcoa vows to ‘listen better’ as it closes in on Alumina
Alcoa boss Bill Oplinger says permitting delays in Western Australia showed the US company needed to listen better, as he prepares to spend $4.6 billion buying more Australian assets.
March 2024
Street Talk triggered $207m freeze order; family ‘flight risk’
The rich Taiwanese-Australian family behind the Nature’s Care brand lied to the tax office about their income, court documents allege.
February 2024
Atlassian pays $92m tax bill after years of ATO talks
The software developer has struck a transfer pricing agreement with the Tax Office and has agreed to retain intellectual property in Australia that it will pay future tax on.
Lendlease tax dispute exposes Aware Super
Superannuation fund Aware is set to become entangled in Lendlease’s $260 million dispute with the Tax Office over a portfolio of retirement village assets.
Lendlease reveals liability risk from PwC-advised $260m tax scheme
Three years after it dismissed a Financial Review story on a potential tax liability as “speculative”, Lendlease has for the first time disclosed it in its results.
December 2023
Big four partners face ‘career-ending’ fines in PwC fallout
The move is part of a broader multi-year suite of reforms being pursued by the government following the tax scandal which are designed to ward off similar conduct.
Coke shifted $430m offshore which should have been taxed: ATO
The Tax Office alleges that by not charging for intellectual property, The Coca-Cola Company avoided paying more in local taxes.