On 30 March 2010, the High Court handed down its judgment in Bamford & Ors v Commissioner of Taxation. The High Court decision in Bamford has widely been considered to be confined to two narrow issues:
- the meaning of "income of the trust estate"?
- the meaning of "share"? and the application of the proportionate approach
The ATO's Decision Impact Statement on Bamford released on Wednesday 2 June 2010 treats the Bamford decision as raising many other issues which are fundamental to the taxation of trusts. These issues include:
- whether franking credits can form part of distributable income
- whether other notional amounts can form part of distributable income
- whether "streaming"? works for tax purposes
- the relevance of financial accounts in determining trust income.
The Decision Impact Statement also explains what ATO rulings and practice statements will be withdrawn or altered as a result of their now public views.
- This event discussed the impact on the drafting of distribution minutes for the current financial year and into the future.