Federal Court |
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Cour fédérale |
BETWEEN:
Plaintiff
and
Docket: T-879-08
BETWEEN:
TRANSPORT ROBERT (1973) LTÉE
Plaintiff
and
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN
Defendant
REASONS FOR ORDER
(Reasons delivered from the bench at Montréal on May 14, 2009)
HUGESSEN D.J.
[1] Even assuming that the plaintiffs, at trial, would be able to prove the allegations at the basis of their claim for a refund of taxes, I am satisfied that these claims must fail.
[2] The claims are based on an alleged submission made by a public servant, a representative of the Ministère du Revenu, to the effect that the plaintiffs should not file other claims for a refund of the excise taxes paid on the fuel contained in the tanks of the trucks that they exported from Canada for the years subsequent to 1993.
[3] In 2003, Parliament adopted the Budget Implementation Act, 2003, S.C., 2003, c. 15 and, in this Act, it completely eliminated the right of taxpayers to claim excise taxes paid in the circumstances alleged by the plaintiffs, starting from the date of the budget in February 2003.
[4] This is not a case of a limitation period or a time limit. This is simply the elimination of a right previously held by taxpayers.
[5] That Parliament has this right is not in question and, moreover, this right is formally expressed in section 42 of the Interpretation Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. I-21:
[6] Therefore, once royal assent was given to the Act in question, the plaintiffs no longer had any right to claim the tax payments that are the subject of their claim and, as I said in the beginning, their actions must fail.
[7] I will accept the defendant’s motion for summary judgment in the two actions. I will allow such motions and dismiss the actions.
[8] I will mitigate the plaintiffs’ costs in the circumstances of the case and I will award the costs of the action totalling $500 in fees plus disbursements in one of the files and no fees in the other file.
Certified true translation
Janine Anderson, Translator
FEDERAL COURT
SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKETS: T-878-08 and T-879-08
STYLES OF CAUSE: LOCATION ROBERT LTÉE v. HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN
AND
TRANSPORT ROBERT (1973) LTÉE v. HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN
PLACE OF HEARING: Montréal, Quebec
REASONS FOR ORDER: HUGESSEN D.J.
APPEARANCES:
Serge Fournier
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FOR THE PLAINTIFFS |
Stéphane Dion Jean-Robert Noiseux
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FOR THE DEFENDANT |
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
BCF s.e.n.c.r.l. Montréal, Quebec
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FOR THE PLAINTIFFS |
John H. Sims, Q.C. Deputy Attorney General of Canada
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FOR THE DEFENDANT |