Megan Durnford | Associate

MDurnford@jha.comLondon solicitors & barristers specialising in tax litigation, HMRC tax disputes, HMRC tax appeal, HMRC tax tribunal and HMRC tax penalty appeal.
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London solicitors & barristers specialising in tax litigation, HMRC tax disputes, HMRC tax appeal, HMRC tax tribunal and HMRC tax penalty appeal.

PROFILE

Megan was called to the Bar in 2016 and her practice is focused on tax disputes. She has a broad range of experience, having worked on both direct and indirect tax cases, such as her significant involvement in the successful FTT trial as part of the PPCN Group Litigation. She has represented clients at multiple levels of the UK courts and tax tribunals, including hearings before the Supreme Court which involved a case described by that court as unparalleled in complexity, difficulty and vast sums at stake. Megan also assisted in the editing and compilation of ‘The Tax Disputes & Litigation Review’ (8th edition).

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

Called to the Bar of England & Wales, 2016

EDUCATION

University of Law - Bar professional Training Course

University of Birmingham – Law LLB (Honours)

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London solicitors & barristers specialising in tax litigation, HMRC tax disputes, HMRC tax appeal, HMRC tax tribunal and HMRC tax penalty appeal.

JHA ranked in top tier again in Legal 500 UK 2025

We are happy to announce that JHA's Tax Disputes Team has again been ranked as Tier 1 by Legal 500 today, a ranking we have proudly achieved every year since we began in 2013. A special congratulations to Graham Aaronson KC who has again been recognised in the Hall of Fame category, Iain MacWhannell (ranked as a Leading Partner) and Mei Wong (ranked as a Leading Associate).

This is the latest successful ranking, following previous top-tier rankings in Chambers UK Legal Guide 2024 and Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2024.

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London solicitors & barristers specialising in tax litigation, HMRC tax disputes, HMRC tax appeal, HMRC tax tribunal and HMRC tax penalty appeal.

Armour Veterinary Group v HMRC – Warning for Partnership Personnel Changes?

In this decision, the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber) (“FTT”) dismissed an appeal against discovery assessments which disallowed amortisation relief claimed by the Appellant company for three types of goodwill acquired from a partnership. The decision examined the applicability of each of the circumstances set out in s882 CTA 2009 before concluding none of them had been satisfied. It also provided guidance on the meaning of carrying on a business pursuant to s884 CTA 2009. In rejecting the appeal, the FTT reached a number of key conclusions:

  1. partners can potentially rebut the presumption that individual partners do not own the goodwill of the business (in whole or part) by expressly recording the division in a partnership agreement;
  2. whether a partner is an equity or salaried partner has no bearing on whether they can be treated as carrying on the business for the purpose of s884;
  3. when determining whether and when a partner carries on a business, the FTT will consider, inter alia, (1) if they are in a partnership as per the definition in s1 of the Partnership Act 1890 and (2) their role in the day-to-day running of the practice;
  4. a fundamental aspect of the self-assessment regime is that taxpayers must ensure that they retain adequate records (backed up by an external valuation as relevant in the case of a goodwill transfer) sufficient to support the information provided in their returns, including evidence to support claims made for relief.

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London solicitors & barristers specialising in tax litigation, HMRC tax disputes, HMRC tax appeal, HMRC tax tribunal and HMRC tax penalty appeal.

HMRC Makes Changes to COP9

On 14 June 2023, HMRC published a substantially rewritten Code of Practice 9 (“COP9”). Helen McGhee and Megan Durnford set out the key changes implemented as a result of this publication.

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London Barristers & Attorneys specialising in Tax Litigation