ABSTRACT
In this chapter, adapted for this Companion from her earlier work, Allison Christians points out the conflation of tax avoidance and tax evasion, a phenomenon that has recently been on the rise. The chapter argues that moral assessment that relies on legislative intent to discern unacceptable tax behaviour is questionable when states and tax authorities create and maintain tax regimes, adopted through democratic legislative process, that facilitate and encourage tax avoidance. The author suggests that the legal system, and not notions of everyday morality enforced by civil society, should bear responsibility for constraining taxpayer behaviour, and concludes by calling for transparency and accountability in governance.
