Judge Finds Tax Office, Prosecutors Misused Powers and Falsified Evidence in Tax Case

A Queensland judge has blown the whistle on abuses of power inside the ATO and CDPP, warning their conduct threatens the foundations of justice.

A sculpture of the Roman goddess Justitia, commonly known as Lady Justice, outside the Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law in Brisbane, Australia. Chris Olszewski, Creative Commons Licence via Wikimedia.

A Queensland Supreme Court Justice has found that staff from the Australian Tax Office (ATO), with the support of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP), hid and falsified evidence to oppressively prosecute a defendant, in what he called a serious abuse of investigative powers.

Justice Paul Smith said the ATO “has brought the administration of justice into disrepute and has the tendency of undermining the integrity of the court.”