Tax Treaty Case Law around the Globe 2014

S. 365Chapter 37 Australia: Use of Information Collected from Cayman Islands

Graeme S. Cooper

37.1. Introduction

One of the most significant recent developments in international tax arising from the global financial crisis has been the enormous amount of effort devoted by governments to expanding the framework for the exchange of information between tax authorities. Australia has been actively pursuing a network of agreements for the exchange of information with well-known tax havens, to complement the exchange of information articles in its bilateral income tax treaties.

Australia, however, has little jurisprudence on the cross-border exchange of information process, whether under these dedicated exchange of information agreements or under the exchange of information articles in bilateral income tax treaties. The meaning and operation of these provisions, and any boundaries surrounding their use, have rarely been tested in Australian courts. This will undoubtedly change as interested parties attempt to prevent the disclosure of information to foreign revenue authorities and the use in Australian courts of information gathered abroad.

Several cases recently decided by the Australian courts ar...