Members of Chambers can be instructed both to give tax advice and to conduct tax appeals and other tax-related litigation. We are often instructed directly by accountants, under the Licensed Access scheme, previously known as “Bar Direct”.

We appear in tax appeals argued before the First-Tier Tribunal (Tax), the Upper Tribunal, the High Court, the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court, the Privy Council and the European Court of Justice and, in special circumstances, in Hong Kong. We give advice on the tax aspects of a wide variety of domestic and international transactions and issues. It is our habit to discuss amongst ourselves difficult points of law arising in all these matters, and our wide experience enables us to offer the most current, accurate and practical tax advice.

For advisory work, particularly where major transactions are in contemplation, it is common to instruct a tax barrister at the early planning stages. For contentious work, a barrister may be instructed at any stage right up to a hearing before a tribunal, the Commissioners, or the Court. However, it is almost always beneficial to instruct a barrister at the early stages of correspondence: in this way, a dispute between the taxpayer and HM Revenue & Customs may often be resolved satisfactorily, without the need for protracted correspondence or a court hearing.

Like other barristers' chambers, we are not a firm or a partnership: each member of Gray's Inn Tax Chambers has his or her own personal practice. But in more complex matters it is generally cost-effective to instruct a junior barrister along with a senior one. This is also true in litigation, where a QC (Queen’s Counsel) will commonly be assisted by a junior.

The choice of barrister for a particular matter is best made in consultation with the clerks, normally by telephone.

Licensed Access Rules for qualified persons other than solicitors.

Liability for the fees

The professional who instructs counsel (typically an accountant) is known as the “licensed access client” and is liable for a barrister’s fee due in respect of work carried out by the barrister under any instructions. Even in a case where the matter concerns a lay client, the licensed access client is solely and exclusively liable to the barrister for the fees whether or not the lay client puts the licensed access client is funds. In this regard:

(1) The relationship between the barrister and the licensed access client is a contractual one.

(2) Any individual giving or purporting to give the instructions on behalf of any partnership, firm, company, individual or other person warrants to the barrister that he is authorised by the latter to do so.

(3) If the licences access client is a partnership or a firm of unincorporated association, the liability of the partners or members and on death that of their estates for the barrister’s fees is joint and several.

(4) Neither the sending by a licensed access client of instructions to a barrister nor the acceptance of those instructions by a barrister nor anything done in connection therewith nor the terms governing Licensed Access nor any arrangement or transaction entered into under them shall give rise to any contractual relationship rights duties or consequences whatsoever either (i) between the barrister or the General Council of the Bar and any lay client or (ii) between the General Council of the Bar and the licensed access client.

Money Laundering Regulations 2007– Client Identification Procedure

In accordance with guidelines issued by the Bar Council and the Revenue Bar Association, we are required to ask all UK or foreign lawyers or regulated professionals who instruct a member of Chambers to confirm in writing that they have confirmed the identity of the client in accordance with the relevant money laundering regulations.

Compliance

In accordance with the Provisions of Services Regulations 2009 (SI 2999/2009) the following information is provided in respect of members (“Members”) of Gray’s Inn Tax Chambers (“the Chambers”): (a) all Members are barristers registered with the Bar Standards Board of England and Wales ("the Board) and those described on the Members’ Page of this website as “QC” are Queen’s Counsel; (b) all Members are sole practitioners; (c) Members must comply with the Code of Conduct of the Bar (“the Code”) in all professional matters, including the acceptance of instructions from clients; (d) subject always to the provisions of the Code, unless the intending client is specifically notified to the contrary in advance of the acceptance of instructions, the general terms on which all Members provide their services:-

i.	to solicitors are those set out in Annexe G2 of the Code as set out here;
ii.	to professional clients other than solicitors are those set out here; and
iii.	where the barrister is authorised to accept instructions from lay clients under the Public Access Rules set out in Annexe F2 of the Code, on the model terms for public access to the services of barristers set out here but subject to such individual variations as may be necessary in the circumstances, which will in all cases be communicated before the acceptance of instructions;

(e) all Members have professional liability insurance provided by the Bar Mutual Indemnity Fund Limited ("BMIF"), whose postal address is 90 Fenchurch Street, London EC3M 4ST and whose territorial coverage is worldwide, subject to BMIF’s terms of cover, which may be accessed on application to BMIF or from its website; (f) some or all Members may have further professional liability insurance from other insurers, contact address(es) and details of which may be obtained by applying to clerks@taxbar.com; (g) any complaint about a barrister should, in the first instance, be made to the barrister in question or to the Head of Chambers, Mr. Milton Grundy, either in writing or by e-mail to clerks@taxbar.com, and if a satisfactory solution to the complaint is not obtained from these sources, all Members are subject to a non-judicial dispute resolution procedure, which may be accessed through the Legal Ombudsman, whose website is at http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk; (h) each Member may be contacted by e-mail at clerks@taxbar.com or by such other e-mail address as may from time to time be communicated; and (i) the VAT registration of each Member will be provided to clients promptly after the receipt of instructions.

Pursuant to and in accordance with the Code it is hereby further declared as follows: (a) the Chambers has an equality policy in accordance with 404.2(d) of the Code and an Equality Officer as there indicated; (b) the Chambers offers pupillage and has a pupillage policy and pupillages are advertised and funded in accordance with Annex R of the Code and pupil supervisors are accredited and pupils are registered with the Board; (c) Members undertake work which brings them within the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 and there are procedures in place to identify the client in those cases and proper records are kept in relation to those cases and staff and members have had training to identify money laundering transactions.