Man loses court case over 'fiscal evasion' allowance

Mr Justice Giannino Caruana Demajo, sitting in the First Hall of the Civil Court, dismissed a claim by a worker against his former employer on the basis that the protection of the courts could not be sought by accomplices in schemes of tax evasion.

The judgment was delivered in the case filed by Victor Sammut against Castille Hotel Limited.

Mr Sammut said he worked for the hotel between January 1992 and December 1997. He claimed that throughout his employment he had never been paid according to law for public holidays or for overtime work.

Mr Sammut added that in the last five years of his employment he had not received the special allowance of Lm20 per week agreed upon between the parties.

In his writ, filed in 1998, he asked the court to order his former employer to pay him all amounts due to him.

The court had previously upheld the hotel's plea that Mr Sammut's claim was barred by lapse of time. The court ruled that the plea affected all claims that Mr Sammut might have had against the hotel prior to October 1997.

In its final judgment, the court concluded that Mr Sammut's employment with the hotel was terminated on November 9, 1997. The court had therefore to examine the situation between the parties between October 5 and November 9, 1997.

Mr Sammut had testified that he had not attended for work during the period in question and Mr Justice Caruana Demajo declared that Mr Sammut could not therefore expect to be paid for overtime work and work on public holidays that had not been carried out.

When referring to the special allowance of Lm20 per week, Mr Sammut had testified that this constituted part of his salary that was not declared for fiscal purposes.

Mr Justice Caruana Demajo ruled that whoever was an accomplice in an agreement that led to fiscal evasion could not request the assistance of the court to obtain some benefit from such agreement.

Thus, Mr Sammut's claim in respect of this special allowance could not be upheld.

Mr Sammut's writ was therefore dismissed with costs.