‘Court of Tax Appeals a shield vs state abuses’

THE Court of Tax Appeals serves as a safeguard against abuse of tax power by the State, Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo said last week.

“The service that you provide as a specialized court — fairly weighing the contrasting interests of the State and of its taxpayers, wisely reconciling and correcting tax issues, and serving as a safeguard against any abuse or circumvention of the power to tax — will remain all the more important given the growing needs of our developing nation, especially amid the myriad crises we face today and will face tomorrow,” Gesmundo said in a keynote speech during rites for the 70th anniversary of the CTA on June 14.

The CTA has exclusive appellate jurisdiction to review decisions involving violations of the National Internal Revenue Code and the Tariff and Customs Code, as well as those involving local tax cases and assessment and taxation of real property.

Gesmundo acknowledged that world today is different from when the tax court was founded 70 years ago, and said the CTA should “be attuned to the changing needs of the present, and to remain adaptable to innovations and prepared for the challenges of the future.”

The top magistrate also encouraged the CTA to continue working to “change the expectations of the public in judicial institutions, especially as the tax court continues to make important contributions to the country’s development.”

In his speech, Gesmundo also highlighted how the SC’s blueprint of judicial reform, the Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027, or the SPJI, helps judicial institutions such as the CTA better adapt to the changing times.

“The CTA, in its conscientiousness in rendering its decisions judiciously and expeditiously, has always been well aligned with the aspirations and policy directions of the Supreme Court — and the same is true in our pursuit of the SPJI,” he said.

The CTA was created on June 16, 1954, under Republic Act 1125 as a three-person court with a presiding judge and two associate judges.

The membership was tripled in 2008 to its current composition of a presiding justice and eight associate justices, establishing the CTA as a court on the same level as the Court of Appeals.

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