Simon Steward QC, FTI, is a barrister who specialises in revenue law. At October’s National Resources Tax Conference in Perth he will present the session ‘Can Salary Paid to an Employee Ever Be on Capital Account?’ and take part in a panel discussion on market value. We spoke to him about what to expect at the conference.

Admitted to the legal profession in 1992, Simon was called to the Victorian Bar in 1999 and appointed Silk in 2009. Specialising in the areas of Administrative Law, Taxation and Revenue, he is a Senior Fellow in the University of Melbourne Faculty of Law and is the immediate past President of the Tax Bar Association. He has been a member of the Institute for approximately 21 years.

Asked what attendees can expect to learn from his session, Simon told us he’ll be looking at “The deductibility of Salary, and whether salary and wages can ever be on capital account”.

A perennial issue for the energy and resources sector, the issue of the deductibility of salary paid to employees working on capital projects has remained unresolved since Goodman Fielder Wattie. Simon’s session will address this difficult issue head on by considering relevant authorities, different circumstances – e.g. employees working part-time or full-time, and offering his views on when such expenditure is or is not on capital account. Simon tells us delegates will “leave with improved knowledge of the law”.

Simon will also take part in the Market Value Panel Discussion, chaired by Hugh Paynter, CTA, (Herbert Smith Freehills). Joining Simon on the panel are Louise Clarke (Australian Taxation Office), Nicki Ivory (Deloitte), and Tim Kyle, CTA, (Greenwoods & Herbert Smith Freehills), who will offer different perspectives on topical market value issues such as: