EC Tax Law is one of six titles in the Oxford European Community Law series, the aim of which is to provide “a clear, concise and critical exposition of the law in its social, economic and political context, at a level which will interest the advanced student, the practitioner, the government and Community officials”.

From the outset the European Community has had a profound impact on the law of taxation. Many key taxes are directly governed by Community law, namely value-added tax, excise duty and large areas of company taxation. Some aspects of taxation are subject to common regulations, while others require the competing tax authorities to consult. There is also provision for the exchange of information between the taxing authorities of the Member States as well as the creation of a framework for the recovering of tax debts. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg. It is becoming apparent that, in common with other economic activities, the fundamental freedoms of the Treaty also affect areas of indirect and direct taxation which have historically fallen within the fiscal sovereignty of the Member States. Where tax frontiers are eliminated, the differing tax rates and the tax base could lead to cross-border shopping or relocation of suppliers. Therefore, it is inevitable that fiscal measures which impinge on the free movement of goods, services, workers and capital and equal completion must be of primary concern to the Community and give rise to a strategy for harmonization or, at least, accommodation of these competing interests.

The authors have endeavoured to look at the subject from these fresh perspectives. In order to satisfy the requirements of the tax specialist, as well as the advanced student, its approach is both analytical and practical. For those involved in maritime and commercial law, it provides a comprehensive and authoritative discussion on complex areas of taxation relevant to transnational contracts within the Community. (There is a particularly useful summary of the transnational arrangements relating to VAT.)

The book divides into two major sections. The first relates to indirect taxation and VAT and covers: Articles 95–99; the basic principles and scope of the common system of VAT; the place of supply and International Transactions, domestic exemptions, the right of reduction; payment of Tax; special schemes and excise duties. The second area concerns direct taxation and company taxation. A range of important issues are discussed, beginning with a clear introduction to Company Taxation. They move on to deal with the Merger Directive and the Report of the Ruding Committee which was set up to study the impact of taxation on the location of investment and the allocation of profits between businesses in different countries. This section concludes with chapters on the Arbitration Convention and the prohibition of discrimination and the fundamental freedoms and their impact in the sphere of direct taxation.

The authors’ detailed coverage of the Treaty’s tax provisions and their analysis of the legislation in relation to VAT and corporate taxation is complemented by an exciting exposition of the inevitable impact of the fundamental freedoms on direct taxation. Equally noteworthy is their treatment of the Court of Justice, with its systematic process of interpretation, which so often leads to a conclusion at odds with that expected by the tax specialist. In this regard, both specialist and generalist lawyers will find value in the authors’ commentary on the approach of the Court of Justice to European tax matters.

The authors are refreshingly critical at times. One example may be found in their criticism of the VAT Committee’s view on the concept of a “Fixed Establishment” under Arts 9(1) and 9(2)(9)(e). (Proposal for a Nineteenth Directive, O.J. 1984 C347.) They state that the VAT Committee’s view “makes little sense in the context of Articles 9(1) and 9(2)(e)”. However, this is not gratuitous