May 20th, 2026
In November 2023, I wrote a piece called “Educating Shakira” about the Colombian singer’s long-running battle with Spain’s tax authority (AEAT). At the time, she’d just settled with prosecutors, accepting six charges of tax fraud, a €7.3 million fine, and a suspended three-year prison sentence. She said settling was about protecting her children and her […]
May 16th, 2026
Introduction Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey arrives in cinemas in July 2026. Universal describes it as bringing Homer’s foundational saga to IMAX film screens. Firstly, I am not Homer[1]. But this feels oddly well-timed for those of us who have embarked on their own odyssey over the years following Baxendale-Waker’s (“BW”) Remuneration Trusts (“RTs”). The UK’s […]
May 8th, 2026
Prologue There are serious arguments to be had about war, foreign policy, international law and conscience. This is not an article about whether pacifism is respectable. It plainly is. This is an article about something narrower. But what it lacks in philosophy it makes up for in sheer barmy-ness. Indeed, it gives ‘magic beans’ a […]
May 1st, 2026
I recently had the following article published by HMRC Tax Investigations Enquiries and Powers magazine. Definitely worth a subscription for those interested in tax disputes. PDF Andy Wood CARF and the Crypto whale
April 22nd, 2026
“Cannot see the wood for the trees.” The phrase is often attributed to Sir Thomas More, writing in the early 16th century in his catchily titled The Confutation of Tyndale’s Answer. Nearly 500 years later, a similar sentiment appears in Lady Justice Falk’s judgment in Currell v HMRC. But let’s rewind. — Back in September […]
