The Singapore Convention on Mediation: open for signature from 7 August 2019
Following several years’ effort by a working group of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), including with input from as many as 85 countries and 35 Non-Governmental Organisations, a draft legal framework for international commercial mediation has been concluded. The framework consists of a Convention on the Enforcement of Mediation Settlements (together with a corresponding Model Law) which is understood to be named the Singapore Mediation Convention.
The initiative, which stemmed from a concern as to the enforceability of mediated settlements, aims to remove the potentially lengthy and difficult processes that parties who participate in an international meditation might currently face when attempting to enforce the outcome in a foreign jurisdiction (such a process would typically involve first obtaining a court judgment before any necessary enforcement procedures).
Consequently, the aim of the Convention is to implement an international regime for the enforcement of mediated settlements that is broadly similar to the successful 1958 New York Convention for the enforcement of arbitral awards and which will make it easier for businesses to enforce mediated settlement agreements with their cross-border counterparts. It is hoped that this will increase the credibility, and therefore attraction, of mediation for international parties.
The Convention will be open for signature from 7 August 2019 and it is understood that representatives from at least 50 countries across the globe will be attending the ceremony which is to be held in Singapore. Of these countries, around half (including the USA and China) have indicated that they will sign the Convention. It will then come into force once it has been ratified by at least three of the signatories.
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Increased Investment in Personal Tax Compliance in the UK (Published in Thought Leaders 4 Private Client)
Advances in technology and increased international fiscal co-operation have made global personal tax compliance initiatives pop up in abundance in recent years. To compound the issue, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the corresponding economic fallout prompted domestic governments to increase transparency in relation to investments held by wealthy foreign individuals (with a focus on oligarchs).
In the UK, in the context of the cost-of-living crisis, public opinion certainly seems to be in favour of increased accountability for high-net-worth individuals (eg, on 9 October 2022, 63% of Britons surveyed thought that “the rich are not paying enough and their taxes should be increased”).1
HMRC is one of the most sophisticated tax collection authorities in the world and the department is making significant investments in technology in the field of compliance work; they are well placed to take advantage of new international efforts to increase tax compliance, particularly considering the already extensive network of 130 bilateral tax treaties in the UK (the largest in the world).2 The UK was also a founding member of the OECD’s Joint International Taskforce on Shared Intelligence and Collaboration (JITSIC) forum.
This article discusses the main developments in support of the increased focus on international transparency and personal tax compliance in the UK. There are other international fiscal initiatives, particularly in the field of corporate taxation, but such initiatives are beyond the scope of this article.
It should be noted that a somewhat piecemeal approach, with constant tinkering makes compliance difficult for the taxpayer and is often criticised for lacking the certainty that a stable tax system needs to thrive.
This article was first published with ThoughtLeaders4 Private Client Magazine
Case note: Lynton Exports (Alsager) Ltd v Revenue and Customs Commissioners [2022] UKFTT 00224 (TC)
As HMRC continue to apply the Kittel principle to increasing numbers of industries and businesses, taxpayers need to be vigilant about evidential requirements that HMRC must fulfil in order to discharge their burden of proof. Read JHA’s latest insight into the First-tier Tribunal’s decision in Lynton Exports (Alsager) Ltd v Revenue and Customs Commissioners [2022] UKFTT 00224 (TC).
If you require any further information about the Kittel, Mecsek, and Ablessio principles, or any other allegations by HMRC of fraud or fraudulent abuse, please contact Iain MacWhannell (imw@jha.com).
