First published in 2002, the second edition of this book—like its predecessor—analyses the tax implications of intellectual property (IP) at the various stages of the life cycle of IP assets, from creation through to exploitation and disposal. The book focuses on the UK tax regime, but this new edition adds a chapter on the international tax aspects of IP transactions and cross-border strategies. The author edits an interesting and quite extensive online blog to accompany and update the printed material.

The book contains a number of helpful appendices as well. In Appendices A to C, the author provides a brief overview of UK tax generally and a synopsis of relevant accounting treatment for intangible assets, revenue recognition and research and development. Appendix D describes, in some detail, the tax treatment of expenditure on the creation of films that applied prior to the substantial changes introduced in the Finance Act 2006 that were aimed principally at restricting the use of “film partnership schemes” as tax shelters. Appendix E reproduces (in 100 pages!) Schedule 29 to the Finance Act 2002, as amended by the Finance Act 2006, which introduced the new regime for taxing the gains and losses of a company from intangible fixed assets.

Like other practitioner-oriented books in the Tottel (now Bloomsbury Professional) tax publications line-up, this book is written in a clear and concise manner that will appeal to lawyers, accountants and businesspersons who are not IP tax specialists but who require a straight-to-the-point reference guide on the subject. There is a detailed table of contents and
tables of statutes,statutory instruments and cases at the front,as well as a good index.As someone who is most certainly not an IP tax expert, this writer found the book instructive, user-friendly and easy to navigate.

Glen Loutzenhiser, British Tax Review, Issue 3, 2011