SpC 723 (2008) Castle Construction v HMRC

Employment status - Taxpayer won

Case Summary:

In this employment status enquiry into a building contractor, HMRC argued that a large number of workers were employees. With several years involved, success for HMRC would probably have meant ruin for Castle Construction.

The Special Commissioner paid no attention to a contractual substitution clause and said control, which is often a key issue, was not a significant factor. He focused more on whether the workers were in business on their own account and concluded that they were.