INCOME TAX |
Penalties |
Chapman v. M.N.R.
T-1561-01
2002 FCT 655, Layden-Stevenson J.
21/6/02
7 pp.
Application for judicial review of MNR's decision denying applicant's request, under Income Tax Act, s. 220(3.1) "fairness provision", for waiver of penalties and interest with respect to applicant's personal income tax for 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 taxation years--Application dismissed--In matters involving exercise of discretion, reviewing court may intervene only where decision made in bad faith, relevant facts ignored, irrelevant facts taken into consideration, decision contrary to law--Not function of Court to examine merits of applicant's claim--No basis to argument, invoking fairness, because applicant successful in request for waiver of interest and penalties with respect to GST/HST claim, should also be successful in request in relation to personal income tax--Even if there were evidence relative to information upon which ministerial delegate's decision in relation to GST/HST made, inconsistency in decisions not ground for judicial review: Domtar Inc. v. Quebec (Commission d'appel en matière de lésions professionnelles), [1993] 2 S.C.R. 756--Requests for relief made by applicant relating to different times; although covering same time frame, made at different times; made under different statutes, by different ministerial delegates-- Each case must be decided on merits--Second argument, failure to give reasons, also fails--Respondent's record, containing various documents pertaining to applicant's request, including completed departmental fairness request summary as well as financial information provided by applicant, coupled with correspondence providing sufficient reasons for decision--Applicant could have requested production of those documents, but did not do so-- Information provided in respondent's record in any event-- Income Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985 (5th Supp.), c. 1, s. 220 (3.1) (as enacted by S.C. 1994, c. 7, Sch. II, s. 181; Sch. VIII, s. 127).