The Human Rights Act incorporated the human rights contained in
the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights into UK law.
Article 6 of the convention concerns the right to a fair
trial and has implications for appeal hearings. Article 6 does not
apply to public law disputes and the European Court of Human Rights
has held that tax is public law. Article 6 therefore does not apply
in relation to tax disputes but it does apply to Tax Credit and
National Insurance Contributions cases. You therefore need to be
aware of the right to a fair hearing in the context of
Commissioners’ hearings and to act in a way which is
compatible with the Convention rights. There is a possibility that
Article 6 will, sooner or later, apply to all Commissioners
hearings.
Article 6 also applies to criminal proceedings.
The General and Special Commissioners are themselves public
authorities and they must also act in a way that is compatible with
Convention rights. If an appellant challenges the Commissioners on
procedural grounds this should be dealt with by the Commissioners.
More information on the Human Rights Act and its impact on
appeals and other areas of work is available on the Human Rights
website.
