On March 30, 2017, the Federal Court of Appeal released its decision in BP Canada Energy Company v. MNR (2017 FCA 61), dealing with whether the Minister of National Revenue (the Minister) could compel the taxpayer to disclose the uncertain tax positions reflected in its tax accrual working papers.
This ruling reverses a decision of the Federal Court that would have required disclosure by the taxpayer. Chief Justice Noël, writing for a unanimous Court, held that the statutory regime, properly interpreted, does not make tax accrual working papers compellable without restriction and that the Minister cannot enlist taxpayers to reveal soft spots in their tax returns.
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP successfully represented BP Canada Energy Company with a team consisting of Al Meghji, Edward Rowe and Pooja Mihailovich (Taxation).
For further information, please see our Osler Update on this decision.
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