The claimant company (Altus) claimed damages for professional negligence by the defendant firm in failing to give advice that would have enabled Altus to implement a restructuring proposal with a view to mitigating its tax liabilities. The defendants denied that the claimant would have implemented the restructuring.

The defendants prepared the corporation tax returns of Altus for its return periods ended 31 December 2008, 2009 and 2010. Altus was a member of a limited liability partnership (LLP). The Corporation Tax Bill was introduced in the House of Commons in December 2008. The Corporation Tax Act 2009 subsequently came into force on 1 April 2009, as part of the Tax Law Rewrite Project. It was not until October 2011 that the defendants pointed out CTA 2009, ss 1263 (‘Profit-making period in which some partners have losses’) and 1264 (‘Loss-making period in which some partners have profits’), and their effect on the claimant