The Beneficiary and Commissioner of Taxation (Taxation)

This matter concerned an application for review of the Commissioner of Taxation's decision to disallow an objection against an amended assessment. The Commissioner assessed the Applicant's income tax liability for the 2014 financial year on the basis that her assessable income included a distribution of $80,000 from a trust. The Applicant contended that she had disclaimed this distribution, a position the Commissioner rejected, noting the Applicant had retained the benefit of PAYG instalments paid by the trust on her behalf. The Applicant also sought leave to extend her grounds of objection to include alternative bases for her claim of disclaimer. The Tribunal was constituted by R Olding and B Pola SMM.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the Applicant had effectively disclaimed the $80,000 distribution from the trust, and whether the Applicant should be granted leave to extend her grounds of objection to include further arguments regarding the disclaimer. The Tribunal also considered whether the Applicant had discharged her burden of proving that the amended assessment was excessive.

The Tribunal found that the Applicant had not discharged the burden of proving that the amended assessment was excessive. It concluded that the Applicant had not effectively disclaimed the distribution. While the Tribunal granted leave to extend the grounds of objection in respect of one proposed ground, it refused leave for other proposed grounds. The Tribunal noted that submissions regarding domestic violence and economic abuse, and the principles from *Garcia v National Australia Bank Ltd*, did not provide a legal foundation to assist in determining whether the Applicant had discharged her burden of proof regarding the amended assessment.

The Tribunal affirmed the objection decision, finding that the Applicant had not proven the amended assessment to be excessive.