Martin is a specialist tax litigation and disputes practitioner who represents corporate clients across a variety of industry sectors and specialises in cases involving VAT, Excise Duties and Customs Duties.
He frequently advises on complex indirect tax cases and fraud cases, and particularly ”means of knowledge” (also known as ‘Kittel’) cases where HMRC attempt to recover lost tax from others who were not involved in fraud but nevertheless could have known of its existence.
Martin advocates that the best method of avoiding disputes is to take professional advice in advance of commencing new ventures or expanding trade into new markets or routes. As a senior practitioner in this field, he assists his clients in planning, and also refining the trading and due diligence procedures manuals which are the best defence against future tax enquiries by HMRC in the UK.
Having previously worked as a special investigator for the law enforcement department of HMRC, Martin is very well placed to advise clients on best practices to maintain a good relationship and prevent litigation or disputes.
Martin advises clients in all sectors and works particularly closely with clients in the consumer electronics, import/export, alcoholic/soft drinks, haulage, leisure and entertainment sectors, which are all high on HMRC’s target lists and most likely to be on the receiving end of aggressive and disruptive action.
Expertise
- VAT Litigation
- VAT / Excise / Customs Advice and Consultancy
- Excise Duties Litigation & Advice
- Customs Duties
- Fraud
- ‘Kittel’ Litigation
Experience
- Successfully overturned assessment of Excise Duty ‘handling’ penalties, on appeal to the Tax Tribunal.
- Successful conduct of numerous ‘Kittel’ allegations including Livewire Telecom Ltd, JDI Trading Ltd, CCA Distribution Ltd, Davis & Dann Ltd.
- Advised on cases of HMRC’s enquiries into alleged under payment of VAT by a nightclub chain.
- Advised on cases of opposed applications for Excise WOWGR licences.
- Advised on a contested VAT reclaim concerning supplies of iPhones to a broker via ‘runners’.
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Career
Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2019, Martin worked at the following firms:
- Smith & Williamson
- KPMG
- HM Customs & Excise