One of the critical issues at the centre of Cameron v Commissioner of Taxation [2026] was whether a valid family trust election was made in respect of the Cameron Family Trust. Find out what the verdict means for FTEs in our article.
Recent months have seen a number of significant developments affecting trusts and their beneficiaries. Most notably, the High Court’s decision in Bendel’s case, the Federal Court decision in Cameron’s case and 2026-27 Federal Budget reforms relating to discretionary trusts, and capital gains tax. This article examines the implications of the Bendel and Cameron decisions and explores several key issues arising from the proposed reforms.
The High Court has decided in favour of the taxpayer in the Bendel case – with a 5-2 majority – concluding that an undrawn trust distribution is not a loan under Division 7A. We summarise the outcome and contemplate some likely consequences of this outcome.
The Commissioner has been unsuccessful in its appeal to the Full Federal Court in Morton’s case. Here we provide a summary of the appeal decision.
Family trust distribution tax has brought home the realisation that the two and four year time limit on amending assessments is not universal. There are other instances where these limits do not apply which are well worth being aware of.
We’re not quite at the end of Uber trip yet, with the High Court granting Uber Australia Pty Ltd (‘Uber’) Special Leave to appeal the decision in Chief Commissioner of State Revenue v Uber Australia Pty Ltd of 1 August 2025. Here’s what it might mean.
The ATO’s compliance activity in relation to family trust elections is raising issues about what the law was intended to do and whether the current compliance approach ignores principles of fair taxation in order to use the complexity of these rules to raise revenue, regardless of the consequences to the affected taxpayers.
With increased scrutiny from the ATO on the eligibility of deductions claimed on individual tax returns, it even more important to remember the significance of substantiation when claiming deductions in your income tax returns.
We were recently made aware of a process that the ATO adopts to assist some taxpayers in obtaining refunds of franking credits on a timely basis – that is, soon after the end of the income year. Here’s what you need to know.
Tax residency is an issue that comes up repeatedly, and every case seems to reinforce one key principle – every case is different. So past cases can help us understand the requirements, but there is risk in treating them as if they are a binding precedent.
