Diploma in Taxation for Legal Professionals
Start date
Delivery method
Assessment
Exam
CPD hours
Fee
Course leader
8 November 2014
Onsite Thursday evenings from 6.00pm – 9.00pm and occasional Saturdays at
the Law Society of Ireland & the Irish Tax Institute and Webcast Online.
(Please note Workshops will not be webcast)
There will be two 3 hour closed book exams
Paper 1, Friday, 17th April 2015 and Paper 2, Saturday, 25th April 2015
Satisfies the full CPD hour’s requirements for 2014 and 2015 provided relevant
sessions are attended. A CPD credit of up to a maximum of five hours may be
claimed for time spent in relevant eLearning. For more details see the CPD
handbook. Please see the CPD scheme information in the member’s area of
www.lawsociety.ie for further information.
€2,200
Olga Gaffney, Solicitor, AITI Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA), Law Society of
Ireland o.gaffney@lawsociety.ie
& Anne Gunnell, AITI Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA), Irish Tax Institute.
Course overview
The Law Society of Ireland and the Irish Tax Institute are jointly offering a unique Diploma in Taxation
for Legal Professionals which, upon successful completion, includes a pathway to the prestigious
Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualification: (a successful candidate will be entitled to exemptions from
both the “Income Tax Fundamentals” and also the “Capital Gains Tax Fundamentals” exams at Part 1 of
the Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualification).
This course aims to assist legal practitioners: identify fundamental tax and key commercial law issues
arising in commercial and private client transactions; understand fundamental tax principles, reliefs and
exemptions; prepare fundamental tax computations for individuals and corporates; and be aware of tax
implications of property transactions.
The course will begin with a review of several key areas of commercial law including: contract law;
company law; employment law; competition law and mergers; partnership law; intellectual property and
technology law; consumer law & e-commerce/online business transactions; insolvency law; and key
commercial contracts which arise in commercial practice, such as, share and asset purchase agreements
and shareholder agreements. An overview of the Companies Bill 2012 which will consolidate existing Irish
company legislation and introduce several company law reforms will be discussed and areas of landlord &
tenant and succession law will also be reviewed.
Practical workshops examining real-life scenarios including:
 Fundamental income tax, capital gains tax and corporation tax computations;
 Practical application of value added tax; capital acquisitions tax and stamp duty in connection
with property transactions;
 Practical experience of identifying issues arising when buying/selling a business;
 Practical experience of identifying issues arising when passing on a family business and issues
arising when dealing with start-ups.
Diploma in Taxation for Legal Professionals
Course structure:
This course runs over six months with eight modules as follows.
Module 1: Introduction: Review of key areas of commercial law including: contract law; company law;
employment law; competition law and mergers; partnership law; intellectual property and technology
law; consumer law & e-commerce/online business transactions; insolvency law; and commercial law in
practice. Succession law and landlord & tenant law will also be reviewed.
Module 2: Income Tax - basis for income tax; residence, ordinary residence and domicile; capital
allowances; taxation of income from trade/profession; taxation of income from wealth; taxation of
married couples/cohabitants and civil partners; taxation of employment; universal social charge and
PRSI; administration of self-assessment for individuals; specified reliefs and double taxation agreements.
Module 3: Corporation Tax – trading, domestic and close companies; corporate losses and group
relief; corporate structures; Ireland’s holding company regime; the knowledge economy and transfer
pricing.
Module 4: Capital Gains Tax – the framework of capital gains tax; reliefs; companies and their
shareholders; retirement relief on disposal of business or farm assets; leases and other property
transactions.
Module 5: Value Added Tax (VAT): the EU-wide framework for VAT; VAT rules relating to taxable
persons; and VAT implications involving property transactions.
Module 6: Capital Acquisitions Tax: establish an individual’s liability to capital acquisitions tax;
calculate the value of gifts and inheritances (including reliefs such as agricultural and business reliefs,
and the dwelling house exemption); anti-avoidance provisions; capital acquisitions tax issues relating to
property transactions and transfer of a family business; and the administration of capital acquisitions tax.
Module 7: Stamp Duty: identify when stamp duty arises; the charge to stamp duty on sales and
leases; stamp duty issues involving property, assets and investments; married couples/cohabitants and
civil partners; anti-avoidance provisions; reliefs and exemptions; and the administration of stamp duty.
Module 8: Practical workshops & case – studies
Course Delivery
This course is provided onsite and webcast live for those who are not in a position to attend. These
recordings are available for the duration of the course and are an effective study tool. Workshops form
an integral part of the course design and offer an opportunity to participants to work in smaller groups,
facilitated by an experienced practitioner. These sessions are intended to be interactive and consolidate
what is provided in the lecture sessions by working through relevant problem-based case studies.
Due to the interactive nature of workshops, they will not be webcast and we strongly recommend that all
participants attend the introductory session, even those who intend availing of the webcast facility for the
remainder of the lectures.
Students are obliged to attend onsite for the following sessions:
Introductory session: 8th November 2014
Workshop 1: Saturday, 24th January 2015 - Practical fundamental income tax, capital gains tax and
corporation tax computations.
Workshop 2: Saturday, 28th February 2015 - Practical application of VAT and fundamental
computations regarding VAT on property transactions, capital acquisitions tax and stamp duty.
Workshop 3: Saturday, 7th March 2015 - Practical tax considerations and commercial law issues
when buying/selling a business.
Workshop 4: Saturday, 21st March 2015 - Practical tax considerations and commercial law issues
when passing on a family business and issues arising when dealing with start-ups.
Diploma in Taxation for Legal Professionals
Learning outcomes
On completion of this course participants will be able to:
 Identify fundamental tax issues and key commercial law issues arising in commercial and private
client transactions.
 Prepare fundamental tax computations for individuals and corporates.
 Analyse commercial and private client transactions from a practical commercial law perspective.
 Identify tax issues arising on property transactions across all tax heads.
 Understand fundamental tax principles, reliefs and exemptions.
Who should attend?
The course will have a practical emphasis and will appeal to Solicitors and Barristers, particularly those
who have an interest in taxation and legal issues arising in commercial and private client transactions.
Lecture and Tutors
The Diploma in Taxation for Legal Professionals emphasises a practical “know how” approach to the
fundamentals of taxation. Our lecturers and tutors are drawn from members of the Law Society of
Ireland, the legal profession and the Irish Tax Institute who have significant practice expertise in these
areas.
Irish Law Awards Law School of the Year award winner 2012 and finalist 2013