06/05/2008

Ruling Ravon

Ruling Ravon, next step of ruling Ferazzini, is qualified as a “bomb” by the French fiscal authorities. It’s about fiscal inquiries and investigations procedures led by judges when there are suspicions towards fiscal fraud.

Those procedures were said to be against rules of « fiscal inquiries » regulated by the article L16B of the book of Fiscal Procedures according to which “Everyone has the right to defend their cause equitably (…) before an independent and impartial court, established by the law, which will decide (…) on contesting of their rights and obligations of civil character (…)”.

Regarding justice and law in European Union, superiority of European decisions applies, that’s to say European law purely on French law.

We are facing a burning issue about tax heavens and fiscal evasion since the scandal in Lichtenstein and thus we can’t but say that this “bomb” comes at the right moment. Ruling Ravon has broken a huge and very important fiscal investigation procedure.

This ruling doesn’t put an end to fiscal investigations but gives limits to the way of obtaining information during fiscal inquiries. If the said investigation is against the rules foreseen by the book of Fiscal Procedures, it’s declared as useless and there is nullity and non-admissibility of the evidences, gathered during the investigation, before a court.

As a deduction, if the fault and condemnation of fiscal evasion accused persons are based on proves coming from a non statutory search, the evidences are thus not receivable and so the judgement is broken.

We really understand here how important the ruling is now it’s in jurisprudence regarding the judgement towards fiscal fraud or evasion. Because of this ruling, all the current investigations could be stopped and taken to a European Court of Justice.

Thus, we can wonder how the French government will deal with this big justice case which puts in trouble all the investigations led by French judges and courts.