Some disputes can be as costly as they are complex and time-consuming. Although litigation may at times be the only solution, experience shows that many disputes - covering all situations where the tax authority and the taxpayer have a difference of opinion - can be better and more cost-effectively resolved if managed as soon as they arise.

HMRC has published its refreshed Litigation and Settlement Strategy with detailed guidance setting out best practice for how HMRC should use a Collaborative Dispute Resolution (CDR) approach for reaching a settlement in a tax dispute.

This collaborative approach involving Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) procedures, including Mediation, is likely to play an increasingly important part in the way tax enquiries and disputes are managed.

Pump Court Tax Chambers is the first Tax Set to establish a comprehensive ADR Unit dedicated to the provision of a range of services dealing with tax and other associated financial disputes.