Bermudez Biscuit Company succeeds against GRA
ACTING Chief Justice Ian Chang has ruled on an outstanding certiorari claim by Bermudez Biscuit Company Ltd against Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and then Commissioner General Edgar Heyligar. In the action related to the imposition of assessments, the judge made a nisi order absolute and awarded the company $75,000 costs.
Among other things, Bermudez had requested that Heyligar and GRA show cause why a writ of certiorari should not be issued against them and the impositions quashed. It was in respect of a minimum Corporation Tax relating to years of assessment 1997 to 2000, as described in a letter to the company dated May 3, 2000.
Twelve grounds were submitted in support of the company’s contention that the assessments and claims by the Commissioner General were so flawed, in law, as to amount separately and collectively to a nullity.
Justice Chang, in his decision, said: “The Court finds that the Commissioner General made an error in law of determining that the applicant company is a commercial company.
“Consequently, the Court finds that the Commissioner General acted unlawfully and without jurisdiction in making his assessments for the years 1997 to 2000 by (mis) applying Section 10 A (1) of the Corporation Tax Act to assessments  of the liability of the applicant company. Even if the Commissioner General had made a wrong determination of fact, in finding that the applicant company is a commercial company, the result would have been the same.”
Accordingly, the orders or rules nisi of certiorari and prohibition, made by Justice Carl Singh (as he then was) against the Commissioner General, are made absolute.
The orders or rules nisi of certiorari and prohibition against the GRA were discharged since it is not the statutory authority for making tax assessments but the Commissioner General himself, Justice Chang said.
He added that he did not see the necessity of treating with other issues raised by the company.