Tax and Innovation (LAWS90131)
Graduate courseworkPoints: 12.5Not available in 2021
Please refer to the return to campus page for more information on these delivery modes and students who can enrol in each mode based on their location.
About this subject
Overview
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This subject will address critical issues in the taxation treatment of activities relating to the development of new knowledge and products. Australia has a comprehensive but complex system that provides taxation concessions for expenditure on innovation, which this subject will examine in detail. The subject does not assume a tax background.
The general income tax and capital gains implications of income and expenditure in relation to the development of intellectual property, both domestically and internationally, will be considered. A key component of this subject is understanding the underlying policy drivers in Australia and other jurisdictions.
Principal topics include:
- What is research and development?
- The elements of intellectual property at general law and their impact on its taxation
- The source of intellectual property (IP) in an inter(net)connected world
- Research and development concessions and the regulatory regime
- The advantages of early stage innovation companies (ESICs) and early stage venture capital limited partnerships (ESVCLPs)
- The assessability of income from, and deductibility of expenditure on, the innovation of products and the development and exploitation of intellectual property
- The Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)effect and transfer pricing of intellectual property
- Litigation of research and development disputes and their unique problems.
Intended learning outcomes
A student who has successfully completed this subject will:
- Have an advanced and integrated understanding of the R&D tax incentive, the object of the incentive and the relevance of the incentive to Australian companies, particularly start-ups
- Have a detailed understanding of the meaning of R&D activities and the considerations for entities to be entitled to an R&D offset
- Be able to critically examine, analyse, interpret a number of scenarios from a variety of industries to apply the principles of the R&D tax incentive to practical situations
- Have a detailed understanding of the regulatory frameworks that govern the R&D tax incentive and the dual track administration pathway overlaying the incentive
- Have an advanced understanding of Tax incentives for early stage investors in innovation companies and the timing implications for companies seeking ESIC designation
- Have an awareness of the Early stage venture capital limited partnership programme and its aims to stimulate the Australian early stage venture capital sector. Have an understanding of how the ESVCLP mechanisms provides the fund manager, flow-through tax treatment and for investors, tax exemptions on their share of returns
- Have an understanding of the global trends in innovation taxation measures and the relevance of these incentives in decision making for business leaders and entrepreneurs in Australia
- Have a developed awareness of the taxation treatments of relevant intellectual properties (IP) outside specific incentive regimes, in order to identify potential issues and benefits under the tax laws in relation to the development and exploitation of IP, including the role of integrity measures
- Have the cognitive and technical skills to independently examine, research and analyse existing and emerging legal and administrative issues relating to innovation tax incentives.
Last updated: 12 November 2022
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Recommended background knowledge
Applicants without legal qualifications should note that subjects are offered in the discipline of law at an advanced graduate level. While every effort will be made to meet the needs of students trained in other fields, concessions will not be made in the general level of instruction or assessment. Most subjects assume the knowledge usually acquired in a degree in law (LLB, JD or equivalent). Applicants should note that admission to some subjects in the Melbourne Law Masters will be dependent upon the individual applicant’s educational background and professional experience.
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 12 November 2022
Assessment
| Description | Timing | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
Option 1, Part 1: Assignment | 10 December | 30% |
Option 1, Part 2: Take-home examination
| 18 - 21 January 2019 | 70% |
Option 2: Research paper
| 11 February 2019 | 100% |
| Hurdle requirement: A minimum of 75% attendance | Throughout the teaching period | N/A |
Additional details
Note: Students must choose assessment from the options listed above. If an option contains parts, all parts must be completed if that option is chosen.
Last updated: 12 November 2022
Quotas apply to this subject
Dates & times
Not available in 2021
Additional delivery details
This subject has a quota of 30 students.
Enrolment is on a first come, first served basis. Waitlists are maintained for subjects that are fully subscribed.
Students should note priority of places in subjects will be given as follows:
- To currently enrolled Graduate Diploma and Masters students with a satisfactory record in their degree
- To other students enrolling on a single subject basis, eg Community Access Program (CAP) students, cross-institutional study and cross-faculty study.
Please refer to the Melbourne Law Masters website for further information about the management of subject quotas and waitlists.
Last updated: 12 November 2022
Further information
- Texts
- Links to additional information
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Please note Single Subject Studies via Community Access Program is not available to student visa holders or applicants
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
Last updated: 12 November 2022