ABOUT US
COYLECLARKE
Leo and Alex are delighted to annouce that from February 2008 CoyleClarke are a part of BTGFinancial Partners based out of Deansgate, Manchester. They are part of a wider team of specialists offering greater support to intermediaries with services including tax planning, VAT technical and PAYE/NIC solutions.
CoyleClarke's business deals with issues of Dispute Resolution. Its strength is a unique blend of the two principals who have worked both within the HM Revenue & Customs and in practice and who are completely independent. It is unique in that between them Leo Coyle and Alex Clarke can boast over 60 years in tax. Their track record in solving clients’ tax problems is, as their testimonials suggest, most impressive.
At BTG Financial Partners they are joined by Andrew Walker. Andrew has over 15 years experience in tax investigations including a spell on the HMRC Criminal Prosecution Group and almost 10 years at a Big 4 firm defending clients under enquiry.
The business began in October 2002 following a four year spell by both Alex and Leo at a Big 4 Tax Investigation practice. The key objective of the business is to provide tactical and strategic support to tax practitioners and solicitors whose clients have come under the spotlight of an enquiry. This includes assisting clients to make voluntary disclosures where they are aware that their affairs are not in order. This is an area for taxation specialists as getting it wrong can lead to a client being prosecuted.
In the field of tax investigations, often the technical side of tax is a side issue where getting the tactics right overrides. Having a good working relationship with HM Revenue & Customs is key to this in understanding the Investigator’s mindset. Having conducted (at a conservative guess) over 3,000 meetings on investigation work each CoyleClarke has probably seen most scenarios at first hand. That said, nothing is new under the sun, and the way some of the ground rules are changing it is important to have someone in your camp who has the flexibility to adapt but also the guile to defend and the strength of character to take the fight to the Revenue when the need arises.
More recent developments include the setting up of the Civil Investigation of Fraud teams across the country. The former Special Compliance Office has largely broken down into units dealing with Marketed Avoidance Schemes and cases of substantial tax fraud. CoyleClarke have developed an expertise dealing with both tax avoidance and tax evasion involving onshore and offshore.