R. v. Hills

R. v. Hills

The Crown failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Wayne shared the requisite criminal intent for conspiracy or wilful evasion because the allocations were genuine trades understood by the parties as a form of tax deferral and there was factual and legal mistake/ignorance; however, Wayne knowingly presented allocations from EDF Man as his own on returns, and the Crown proved beyond a reasonable doubt he filed false or deceptive statements for counts 9 and 11, warranting convictions on those counts only.

Citation
2007 NSPC 27
Parties
Crown: Her Majesty the Queen; Defendant: Wayne Hills
Court
Nova Scotia Provincial Court
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
29 May 2007
Procedural Posture
Criminal (tax Offences) / Trial Judgment (decision)
Outcome
Accused found guilty on counts 9 and 11; acquitted on counts 1-8, 10 and 12.
Legal Topics
Conspiracy, Filing False or Deceptive Tax Returns, Tax Evasion, Mens Rea, Willful Blindness, Reassessment/objections
Source Language
English
Criminal Law Tax Law Administrative Law Conspiracy Filing False or Deceptive Tax Returns Tax Evasion Mens Rea Willful Blindness +1 more

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Parties

Her Majesty the Queen

Crown

Wayne Hills

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Criminal (tax Offences) / Trial Judgment (decision)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a conspiracy existed to wilfully evade taxes or to file false/deceptive returns
  2. 2 Whether the accused filed false or deceptive tax returns for specified years
  3. 3 Whether the accused wilfully evaded payment of taxes for specified years

Ratio Decidendi

The Crown failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Wayne shared the requisite criminal intent for conspiracy or wilful evasion because the allocations were genuine trades understood by the parties as a form of tax deferral and there was factual and legal mistake/ignorance; however, Wayne knowingly presented allocations from EDF Man as his own on returns, and the Crown proved beyond a reasonable doubt he filed false or deceptive statements for counts 9 and 11, warranting convictions on those counts only.

Court Disposition

Accused found guilty on counts 9 and 11; acquitted on counts 1-8, 10 and 12.

Orders

  • Verdict: guilty on counts 9 and 11; not guilty on counts 1-8, 10 and 12