Taxation, Commissioner of (Cth) v Shaw [1950] HCA 2

High Court of Australia Latham C.J. Taxation, Commissioner of (Cth) v Shaw [1950] HCA 2

ORDER Appeal dismissed with costs.

C.J. Latham delivered the following judgment:—

Latham C.J.

This is an appeal under the Estate Duty Assessment Act 1914-1942, s. 25, from a decision of a Valuation Board.

Section 24 (4) of the Act provides that if an objector to an assessment under the Act is dissatisfied with a decision of the commissioner, he may within thirty days after the service by post of notice of that decision—(a) in writing, request the commissioner—(i) to refer so much of the decision as relates to the value assigned to any property included in the estate to a Valuation Board for review of that value.

In the present case, the administrators of the estate were dissatisfied with the decision of the commissioner in relation to the value of certain shares included in the estate and requested the commissioner to refer so much of the decision as related to the value assigned to those shares to a Valuation Board. The shares were included in the estate of Eliza May Shaw deceased, who died on 6th January 1943. Estate duty was payable upon the value of the estate of the deceased person (Estate Duty Assessment Act, s. 8).

The estate included certain shares owned by the deceased—59,842 £1 shares in McPherson's Pty. Ltd., and 63,234 £1 shares in Private Trust and Investment Pty. Ltd. The latter company owned 410,275 shares in McPherson's Pty. Ltd. Accordingly the value of the shares in McPherson's Pty. Ltd. was an important element in determining the value of the shares in Private Trust and Investment Pty. Ltd. The commissioner assessed the value of the shares in McPherson's Pty. Ltd. at £2 per share and in Private Trust and Investment Pty. Ltd. at £5 per share.

The administrators of the estate, as already stated, objected and the question of the value of the shares was referred to a Valuation Board for review. The review took place and the Board assessed the value of the shares in McPherson's Pty. Ltd. at 34s. per share and in Private Trust and Investment Pty. Ltd. at £4 15s. per share. The commissioner has appealed from that decision to this Court.