Rodney Fisher

Associate Professor

BBus, BEcon, LLB(Hons), MTax, MFinMgt, CPA, FTIA, Barrister

Academic Profile

Rodney Fisher joined the UTS Law Faculty in 2008. He has been an academic since 1991, most recently in the ATAX program at UNSW, and has also worked for a number of years in the tax division of Ernst & Young. He has wide practical and teaching experience in areas of taxation law, having taught at postgraduate and undergraduate levels, and has published a number of books, book chapters and articles on a range of taxation law topics. He has also presented at numerous academic and practitioner conferences, both in Australia and overseas, on taxation law issues.

Rodney also has experience in Administrative Law, and has published widely on the interaction of taxation and administrative law.

Rodney holds joint qualifications as an accountant and lawyer, being both a CPA and being admitted as a barrister in Queensland and NSW. He is Fellow of the Taxation Institute of Australia, and has served on a number of TIA committees, including the NSW Tax Technical Committee, the Examinations & Quality Assurance Board, and the Information Products Working Group.

Rodney is also a referee for a number of the leading taxation journals published in Australia, and was a foundation editor of the e-Journal of Australian Taxation.

Current Research Activities

Currently undertaking research in a number of areas of taxation, and the interaction of taxation and administrative law.

Recent Publications

Books

Tax Questions and Answers (7 editions from 2001 - 2007), 2007 edition with H. Hodgson, ATP. [Nominated for the 2002 Award for Excellence in Educational Publishing.]

Global Challenges in Tax Administration, with M. Walpole (eds), Fiscal Publications, 2005.

Tax Administration: Current Issues and Future Developments, with M. Walpole (eds), Timebase, 2003.

Making Tax Laws Work for You, McGraw-Hill, 2001.

Book chapters

"The thin edge of the wedge? What constitutes waiver of legal professional privilege" M. McKercher & M. Walpole, Further Global Challenges in Tax Administration, Fiscal Publications, 2007.

"A tale of two systems: The divergent tax histories of Australia and Canada" in J. Tiley (ed),  Studies in the History of Tax Law (Vol 2), Hart Publishing, UK, 2006.

"The role for judicial review of tax decisions" in R. Fisher & M. Walpole (eds), Global Challenges in Tax Administration, Fiscal Publications, 2005.

"The long and winding road: A century of centralisation in Australian income tax", with J. McManus, in John Tiley (ed), Studies in the History of Tax Law (Vol 1), Hart Publishing, UK, 2004.

"Tax administration and the personal services income legislation", in M. Walpole & R. Fisher (ed), Tax Administration: Current issues and future developments, Sydney, Timebase, 2003.

"PAYG: 'Preventing Any Yawning Gaps' in tax collection" in M. Walpole and C. Evans (eds) Tax Administration in the 21st Century, Prospect, Sydney, 2001.

"Expert systems: Using technology to meet compliance requirements" in C. Evans & A. Greenbaum (eds) Tax Administration: Facing the Challenges of the Future, Prospect, Sydney, 1998.

 

Refereed Journal Articles
"JMA Accounting: Judicial Diminution of Professional Privilege in Tax Investigations?" (2007) 17(1) Revenue Law Journal.

"Taxing financial arrangements: Harmonising tax and accounting?" (2006) 4(2) e-Journal of Tax Research, 132-152.

"Confidential tax communication: A right or a privilege?" (2005) 20(4) Australian Tax Forum, 20(4), 555-577.

"Taxing financial instruments: Convergence of law and accounting" (2005) 1(1) Journal of the Australasian Tax Teachers Association.

"An assessment by any other name… 'Making an assessment' under self assessment", (2005) 34 Australian Tax Review, 7-19.

"Interpreting privative clauses: Implications for taxation law?"(2004) 19 Australian Tax Forum, 473-500.

"Preserving professional privilege: Implications for tax investigatory powers" (2003) 32 Australian Tax Review, 7-21.

"Whither the common law privileges: Vale client privilege in tax investigations?" (2002) 28 Monash University Law Review, 327-360.

"Capital allowances: The new uniform regime" (2002) 5 (2) Journal of Australian Taxation, 263-305.

"The PAYG instalment system: Unwarranted extensions?" (2000) 4 (3) Journal of Australian Taxation 315-327.

"Taxation of financial arrangements: Australian recommendations and overseas reality", (2000) 29 (3) Australian Tax Review 168-182.

"Evolution of dividend anti-streaming provisions" (1999) 1 (2) Journal of Australian Taxation 17-35.

"Regional Headquarters Incentives" (1997) 26 (4) Australian Tax Review 169-181.

"Offshore Banking Units Concessions - Australia and Overseas" (1994) 3 (1) Taxation in Australia Red Edition 18-29.

 "Partnerships and CGT" (1993) 63 (6) Australian Accountant 22-25.

Practitioner Journal Articles

"Re-introducing the share capital tainting rules" with H. Talib, Tax Specialist, October 2006.

"Charting the promoter penalty mire" 9(5) Tax Specialist, June 2006.

"Editorial message" Tax Specialist, August 2005.

"Dividend streaming: Swimming against the flow?" Tax Specialist, June 2005.

"Reform by name but not nature? Some observations on the implementation of the Ralph reforms" Tax Specialist October 2003.

"Shifting sands: The new value shifting rules" Taxation in Australia May 2003.

"Direct Value shifting: Pitfalls for non-consolidated groups" Tax and Investment Journal April 2003.

"CGT scrip for scrip rollover: Some planning implications" (2002) 5 (4) Tax Specialist 199-209.

"Critical aspects of capital allowances" (2002) Taxation in Australia.

"The ties that bind: Operation of the consolidated group provisions" 5(1) (2001) Tax Specialist August 2001 32-46.

"Advisory systems: Evolution's next step" (1998) 1 (3) The Tax Specialist 131-140.

 "Tax concessions for the Mining Industry" (1997) 5 (2) CQ Journal 19-24.

 "A role for expert systems in taxation practice" (1997) Taxation Software in Australia 1997 ASCPA.

 "Determining primary producer status for tax concessions" (1996) 4 (2) CQ Journal 14-15.

 "The changing face of FBT" (1995) 7 (4) CCH Journal of Australian Taxation 28-32.

"FBT - back to the glory days?" (1995) 11 (8) CCH Australian Payroll Administration News.

"The changing face of FBT" (1995) 10 (49) CCH Tax Week.