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Corporate Tax
DEATH AND taxes may be the only certainties in life - but at least tax can be structured.
Tax structuring for corporate finance mergers and acquisitions is a vital lubricant for successful completion of deals, not least at those stages where documentation that is both correct and commercially sensible has to be drafted.
Brian Garner, Bond Pearce expert in corporate finance tax and VAT, says his role is as a team player.
"I explain to my corporate colleagues what accountants and corporate finance advisors are driving at in negotiations and correspondence," Garner says.
"I am coming at matters from a different angle than the normal tax lawyer. It means Bond Pearce can draft documents in fine detail but with a clear focus on commercially fruitful outcomes."
Garner's experience has been evident in deals he has advised for energy clients - especially in the renewables sector.
"I've worked with companies in the vanguard of many different technologies, including onshore wind, offshore wind, various pyrolysis projects, wave and tidal, solar, biomass landfill gas and EfW," Garner says.
"Getting the tax structure right for a renewable energy project is paramount. Many developers of projects of all sizes hit the same issues. For example, how does one maximise and accelerate tax relief on pre-trading development costs?
"How can one structure projects so as to allow for a tax efficient exit? And what happens if one needs or wants to introduce JV partners? Getting this wrong can cost huge sums of money.
"But getting it right can save you sums."
Bond Pearce's advice extends across the economy and across the range of taxation issues, including tax due diligence.
"We offer the 'standard' tax lawyer role of negotiating and agreeing documents. We also advise on stamp duty, stamp duty land tax, share schemes and Corporation tax and VAT consulting but always with the focus on whether or not it works commercially," Garner says.
"People in this firm are passionate about client service and delivery - they do really care. And we gain invaluable experience from a client list most lawyers would die for."
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