MEDIA RELEASE
18 July 2006
Taking tax avoidance to the people
Victoria University Law Professor John Prebble is taking tax avoidance out of the classroom, with a colloquium on the
subject to that both students of his Jurisprudential Perspectives of Taxation course and other interested parties are
invited.
The colloquium, Comparing the General Anti-Avoidance Rule of Income Tax Law with the Civil Law Doctrine of
Rechtsmissbrauch (Abus de Droit), to be held on Monday 31 July, is being presented by the Victoria University School of
Law in association with the Institute for Policy Studies (where Professor Prebble is undertaking research on tax
avoidance and measures to frustrate it); the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation, Amsterdam (the world’s
largest tax research organisation); and the New Zealand Association for Comparative Law.
With 12 speakers down for the event, not to mention an audience, this is certainly a departure from the usual Master of
Laws class format. But Professor Prebble says the event will hold to the Master’s format of presentations and focused
discussion on a particular topic.
“A comparative law colloquium like this is made possible at Victoria because of the large numbers of German LLM
students, four of whom will speak at this event. They will be joined by David Pickup, Director General of Her Majesty’s
Revenue and Customs, London, who has been responsible for the HMRC project on the general anti-avoidance rule; Professor
Philip Postlewaite, Professor of Law and Director of the Graduate Tax Program at Northwestern University School of Law,
Chicago; Professor Yves-Louis Sage, from the Universite de la Polynesie Francaise, Papeete.”
The colloquium presentations will commence at 5.25pm on Monday 31 July in the Salmond Room, Room 219, School of Law,
Pipitea Campus, Lambton Quay.
Those interested in attending can contact Anna Hamilton on 04 4636327.
ENDS