Request for revocation of garnishee order rejected

Mr Justice Joseph Azzopardi in the First Hall of the Civil Court has dismissed an application filed by Alexander Caruana against the Commissioner of VAT.

Caruana had asked the court to order the revocation of a garnishee order issued against him by respondent and to order the commissioner to notify him anew with a VAT bill so that he could file an appeal to it.

Caruana declared that the commissioner had proceeded against him by obtaining a garnishee order in respect of ex ufficio assessments. However, the assessments had never been served upon Caruana and he did not know there was a legal time limit within which he had to submit his appeal.

He added that his family had suffered a tragedy when his eldest son was involved in a traffic accident and had lost his memory. One year later, his younger son was also involved in a traffic accident and was totally paralysed. These were factors which ought to lead the commissioner to extend the time limit for Caruana to submit his appeal.

The Commissioner for VAT pleaded that all correspondence addressed to Caruana by the VAT Department had been sent to the postal address indicated by Caruana. However, no registered letters had been signed by Caruana and the department had proceeded to notify him by the process of affixing the letters.

The court noted that it was not empowered to overturn the garnishee order issued against Caruana on the grounds of Caruana's personal tragedies. Caruana had not indicated the section of the law in terms of which his application for the revocation had been filed.

The court declared that it sympathised with Caruana but could not provide him with a remedy.

It further resulted, Mr Justice Azzopardi noted, that the department had repeatedly tried to notify Caruana at his address but no one had opened the door. It was then decided to adopt the procedure whereby the letters against Caruana were affixed to his property.

Caruana's application was therefore dismissed by the court.