Government's Litigation Policy - be a little more practical and a little more serious - Supreme Court
IN a judgement delivered on 8th October 2013 (), the Supreme Court observed,
"Revenue cannot be allowed to flip-flop on the issue and it ought let the matter rest rather than spend the tax payers' money in pursuing litigation for the sake of it.
There was, therefore, no need for the Revenue to continue with this litigation when it was quite clear that not only was it fruitless (on merits) but also that it may not have added anything much to the public coffers."
The Supreme Court hoped that the Revenue implements its litigation policy a little more practically and a little more seriously.
The Court also quoted from the judgement in Hoystead v. Commissioner of Taxation, 1926 AC 155 (PC) - "Parties are not permitted to begin fresh litigation because of new views they may entertain of the law of the case, or new versions which they present as to what should be a proper apprehension by the court of the legal result either of the construction of the documents or the weight of certain circumstances. If this were permitted, litigation would have no end, except when legal ingenuity is exhausted."