Mingos v Commissioner of Taxation [2019] FCAFC 211

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Mingos v Commissioner of Taxation [2019] FCAFC 211 Appeal from: Mingos v Commissioner of Taxation [2019] FCA 834

File number: VID 696 of 2019

Judges: KERR, DERRINGTON AND STEWARD JJ

Date of judgment: 15 November 2019

Date of publication of reasons: 29 November 2019

Catchwords: TAXATION – capital gain – main residence exemption – where title to property was transferred to a trustee company with the consent of the taxpayer pursuant to orders of the Federal Magistrates Court – where trust distributed proceeds from sale of the property to the taxpayer – where taxpayer did not include capital gain from sale of the property in his assessable income for the 2014 income year – where taxpayer sought to rely on exemption in s 118-110 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) – where taxpayer contended he had an ownership interest in the property – whether taxpayer had a full equitable interest in the property by reason of the orders made by the Federal Magistrates Court – whether taxpayer held an equitable interest in the nature of an equity of redemption – whether transfer of the property to the trustee company gave rise to a resulting or constructive trust in favour of the taxpayer – where primary judge made findings based on the reliability and credibility of the witnesses – whether taxpayer demonstrated that the findings were wrong by "incontrovertible facts or uncontested testimony" or were "glaringly improbable" or "contrary to compelling inferences" – appeal dismissed

Legislation: Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) s 79 Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) ss 106-50, 118-110, 118-125, 118-130 Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth) Sch 1, ss 284-75, 298-20