George Gillham

I am a Partner specialising in helping clients resolve complicated issues in relation to both direct and indirect tax disputes. I am aided in my ability to do so by the fact that I am a former fast stream civil servant, Inland Revenue tax inspector, and policy adviser on corporation tax. I am also a CEDR accredited mediator.

I advise companies on disclosures to, and disputes with, HMRC, around employer taxes, excise duties, capital allowances, cross border tax restrictions, serious compliance failures, and so on. I also advise (on an emergency basis) companies who find themselves subjected to dawn raids by HMRC.

I advise HNW and professional individuals, such as lawyers, bankers and accountants, who are either subject to or caught up in civil enquiries, or COP 8, COP 9 and criminal investigations by HMRC, including advising at interviews under caution. 

I also advise on tax-related judicial review claims and on professional negligence claims against independent financial advisers, accountants and law firms. 

The vast majority of matters in which I am engaged are settled without recourse to tribunals or courts, mediation also being an option. I have deep experience of tax litigation from the First-tier Tax Tribunal through to the Supreme Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union, including a number of very high value group litigation cases. 

The other demands of practice allowing, I write book chapters, articles in the specialist press, and posts on tax-related issues for the Fieldfisher 'Insights' section; and I occasionally present in the UK and EU on cross border tax issues and on complex tax litigation.

I lead a team of fifteen UK-qualified lawyers, all of whom practice exclusively in the field of contentious tax, although within that we encompass many sub-specialisms. Reflecting the multinational nature of many contentious tax matters  we are able to advise on the impact of UK law in French, German, Spanish, Polish, and Romanian as well as English.