Keystone Law successfully advises defendant in £1.5bn claim by the Danish Customs and Tax Administration

Keystone Law’s Litigation partner Linos Choo has successfully advised Mr Jas Bains, the 40th defendant in the long-running case of SKAT v Solo Capital Partners LLP. The £1.5 billion claim for alleged tax fraud was brought by the Danish Customs and Tax Administration (SKAT) against over 100 defendants – one of the biggest ever to be brought in the Commercial Court. The high-profile case was previously named one of “The Top 20 Cases of 2021”, “The Top 10 Appeals of 2021”, and the “Top 20 Cases of 2024” by The Lawyer.

In a comprehensive 326-page judgment handed down today by Andrew Baker J, the judge found that the representations which SKAT alleged were made to them by Solo Capital Partners, a hedge fund accused of facilitating false Danish withholding tax refund claims, were not made out and that reliance, an essential element of the tort of deceit, had not been proven by SKAT.

SKAT alleged that between 2012 and 2015 it was victim to a tax fraud by various bodies, including Solo Capital, who it was alleged induced SKAT to pay out refunds of Danish dividend withholding tax based on false representations. SKAT argued that many of the refund applicants never held the relevant shares, never received dividends, and never paid withholding tax.

The judgment comes after a hearing lasting for one year and one day, the longest scheduled hearing in the history of the High Court. It was described by Foxton J as “perhaps the largest and most complicated civil proceedings ever commenced in the Commercial Court”.

Linos Choo said:

“I am delighted with the outcome of this trial and pleased to have represented Mr Bains throughout this complex and difficult case. The Commercial Court’s judgment affirms his position from the outset and comes after many years of hard-fought litigation between the parties, which we are glad to have successfully navigated on behalf of Mr Bains.”