TC09655 - [2025] UKFTT 01206 (TC)

There would also be reputational consequences if the assessment and penalty were not successfully appealed.

He thought LP’s evidence on the Monday “went well”.

At the end of the first day of the hearing (i.e. the Monday) he discussed the case with his representatives (he had been represented by counsel at the hearing, and his liaison with his solicitors was via a paralegal who attended the first day of the hearing).

He was advised that if the appellant was successful, it was highly likely that HMRC would appeal which would result in another hearing, potentially another appeal, and then potentially another appeal after that. He gained the impression that HMRC would appeal at every stage if they were unsuccessful.

He “returned from the Tribunal anxious and in a panic”. He was not sure what he could say to a potential purchaser. It seemed to him that there would be a never-ending process of litigation.

The following morning, he instructed his representative (we understand this to be his counsel) to withdraw his appeal. In his words he “could not face a never-ending series of appeals nor could the business afford them”. He describes this decision as “not a rational one” and that it was “born out of panic and a failure to properly understand the appeals process”.

He went on to say that “once the dust had settled after the hearing a friend recommended Dr Anna Willets… an expert in waste” who “understands my business and the industry in which I operate” and that “she could speak my language”.