Date: 20020121
Docket: A-304-01
Neutral citation: 2002 FCA 25
CORAM: STONE J.A.
BETWEEN:
ABDALLAH A. IBRAHIM
Appellant
and
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA
Respondent
Heard at Montreal, Quebec, on January 21, 2002.
Judgment delivered from the Bench at Montreal, Quebec, on January 21, 2002.
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT OF THE COURT BY: EVANS J.A.
Date: 20020121
Docket: A-304-01
Neutral citation: 2002 FCA 25
CORAM: STONE J.A.
BETWEEN:
ABDALLAH A. IBRAHIM
Appellant
and
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA
Respondent
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
(Delivered from the Bench at Montreal, Quebec
on January 21, 2002.)
[1] This is an application for judicial review of a decision by the Tax Court dated May 15, 2001 dismissing an appeal by the applicant, Mr. Abdallah A. Ibrahim, against the Minister's re-assessments of his income tax for the 1998 taxation year. The Minister refused to allow $5,750 claimed by Mr. Ibrahim as deductible expenses incurred for the purpose of earning income from a business in 1998. Mr. Ibrahim claims that his business was writing books on electrical engineering.
[2] The Tax Court dismissed the appeal on the ground that Mr. Ibrahim had failed to provide proof that, except for $24, he had incurred the expenses claimed. In our opinion, the Tax Court Judge committed no reviewable error in finding that there was no evidence sufficient to prove the expenses.
[3] In his oral submissions to this Court, Mr. Ibrahim drew our attention to a letter from a bookseller in India advising him that books that he had ordered had been shipped to him at a cost of 6,868 rupees. However, in our opinion it was not unreasonable for the Tax Court Judge not to have relied on this letter as evidence of deductible expenses for the 1998 taxation year.
[4] First, the date of the letter had been altered so that it is not clear whether it was sent in January or December 1998, or in January 1999. Second, the letter does not indicate the nature of the books sent so that it is not evident that they related to the subject of Mr. Ibrahim's work. Third, there is no evidence that this invoice was in fact paid: the letter does not state that the cost of these books had been debited against Mr. Ibrahim's credit balance with the bookseller, only that the next consignment of books would be. Fourth, the record contains no evidence of the rate at which Indian rupees were exchanged for Canadian dollars in 1998.
[5] Accordingly, in the absence of any reliable records of expenditures, Mr. Ibrahim is not entitled to claim deductions.
[6] The Tax Court Judge made no express finding on the Crown's submission that in 1998 Mr. Ibrahim had no business against which to deduct expenses because he had no reasonable expectation of profit for writing books. Since we agree with the finding of the Tax Court Judge that the expenses claimed by Mr. Ibrahim were not proved, we need make no comment on this aspect of the case.
[7] Finally, on an application for judicial review of a Tax Court decision, the Court has no jurisdiction to award damages for loss of reputation, as claimed by the applicant in this application. This form of relief is therefore not available to the applicant in this proceeding.
[8] For these reasons, the application for judicial review will be dismissed with costs.
"John M. Evans"
J.A.
FEDERAL COURT OF CANADA
APPEAL DIVISION
Date: 20020121
Docket: A-304-01
BETWEEN:
ABDALLAH A. IBRAHIM
Appellant
and
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA
Respondent
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
FEDERAL COURT OF CANADA
APPEAL DIVISION
NAMES OF COUNSEL AND SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKET: A-304-01
CORAM: STONE J.A.
EVANS J.A.
MALONE J.A.
STYLE OF CAUSE: ABDALLAH A. IBRAHIM
Appellant
and
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA
Respondent
PLACE OF HEARING: Montreal, Quebec
DATE OF HEARING: January 21, 2002
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT
OF THE COURT BY: EVANS J.A.
DATED: January 21, 2002
APPEARANCES:
|
Mr. Abdallah A. Ibrahim Montreal, Quebec |
FOR THE APPLICANT (himself) |
|
Mr. Bernard Fontaine |
FOR THE RESPONDENT |
SOLICITOR OF RECORD:
|
Morris Rosenberg Deputy Attorney General of Canada Montreal, Quebec |
FOR THE RESPONDENT |