Popular dancehall artiste Moses ‘Beenie Man’ Davis was successful yesterday in having his $47 million tax case thrown out.
The case was dismissed because the notice of assessment was flawed.
Tax Court Judge Owen Parkin upheld legal submissions from Beenie Man’s lawyer Roderick Gordon that his client was not informed of his legal rights when the notice of assessment was issued.
Gordon argued that after Beenie Man was served with the notice of assessment, he had 30 days under the Income Tax Act to challenge the notice or file an appeal before the Income Tax Commissioner.
Gordon said in Beenie Man’s case, the notice of assessment only informed him that he owed a certain sum of money for income tax.
Beenie Man was reported to have owed the government close to $48 million in taxes between the late 1990s and early 2000. During that period the entertainer was signed with Shocking Vibes and Patrick Roberts, his former manager.
He was assessed last year and the trial began this year in the Tax Court in Kingston.
The tax authorities alleged that Beenie Man failed to pay over $29,290,116 in back taxes and $18,641,254 in penalties.
If the tax case against Beenie Man is to be pursued, the Tax Department will have to do another assessment, issue another notice of assessement and inform Beenie Man of his legal rights.
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