Tax chamber
The Tax Chamber was established to decide appeals relating to Lands and Buildings Transaction Tax and Scottish Landfill Tax.
The Scotland Act 2012 provides the Scottish Parliament with the powers to introduce devolved taxes, particularly those taxes on land transactions and on waste disposal to landfill, effective from 1st April 2015.
As a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government, Revenue Scotland is the tax authority responsible for the collection and management of the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) and the Scottish Landfill Tax (SLfT).
Revenue Scotland work closely with Registers of Scotland on LBTT and with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) on SLfT.
The Tax Chamber is headed by Chamber President Anne Scott.
The skills required of judicial office holders are as follows-
Eligibility
Legal Members of the First-tier Tribunal are appointed by the Scottish Ministers. To be eligible for appointment you must:
- Have previous engagement in practice for a period of not less than 5 years as a solicitor or advocate in Scotland; and
- Subsequent engagement in any of the activities listed below:
(a) exercising judicial functions in any court or Tribunal;
(b) practice or employment as a lawyer of any kind; or
(c) teaching or researching law at or for an educational institution.
Legal Knowledge
- Evidence of a high level of legal knowledge and experience and skills in interpretation and application of the law
- A knowledge of and experience in housing or property law or evidence of the motivation and ability to acquire legal knowledge in this area.
Leadership
- The ability to exercise strong leadership and work constructively and collaboratively with other members of the Tribunal in reaching independent and reasoned decisions.
Sound Judgement & Intellectual Capacity
- The ability to concentrate on and absorb arguments, summarise factual and legal issues, and apply knowledge to arrive at balanced judgements.
Management Skills
- The ability to manage cases actively and expeditiously, and produce a high quality of written work quickly.
Communication & Interpersonal Skills
- Courteous and considerate to all tribunal users and staff, sensitive to people from different social backgrounds.
- Committed to engaging positively and openly with parties and the public and encourage participation in proceedings.
Eligibility
Eligibility for appointment to the Tax Chamber is set out as follows:
(1) A person is eligible for appointment as an ordinary member of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland if paragraph (2), (3) or (4) applies to the person.
(2) This paragraph applies to a person who is a member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation.
(3) This paragraph applies to a person who is a member of—
(a) the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland;
(b) the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales;
(c) the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland;
(d) the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland;
(e) the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants;
(f) the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants; or
(g) the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy.
(4) Subject to paragraph (5), this paragraph applies to a person who has substantial experience in tax matters and related tax procedures (whether obtained in a business, trade, charity or not-for-profit organisation, or in a profession or in academia).
(5) Paragraph (4) does not apply where a person is a former member of any of the professional bodies listed in paragraphs (2) and (3), if the person has been debarred from the person’s professional body or if the person has been subject to any sanction that would have led to such debarment had the person not ceased to belong to the professional body.