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ARTICLE · 26 OCTOBER 2026

When The Company’s Own Words Outweighed The Ownership Chart

Counter Tax Litigators LLP
Counter Tax Litigators LLP
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Counter Tax Litigators LLP

Counter Tax Litigators LLP

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Richard Homburg's $1.16 million stock option deduction was denied after the Tax Court found his company's own securities filings contradicted his claim of arm's length dealing. The case demonstrates how corporate disclosures made to investors and regulators can become decisive evidence in tax disputes, even when ownership structures appear to support a taxpayer's position.

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Counter Tax Litigators
Counter Tax Litigators
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A founder’s trust structure said one thing. The company’s own disclosures said another (Homburg v. HMK)

Key Takeaways

  1. Richard Homburg claimed a deduction that would have cut the tax on his $1.16 million stock option benefit in half. The CRA said his control and influence over the company meant Homburg was not entitled to the deduction.
  2. How a business describes itself before a tax dispute matters. Homburg Invest Inc. was public, so its statements about control sat in securities filings. A private company makes the same kind of statements to its lenders, shareholders and auditors.
  3. Homburg relied on the visible structure: the share ownership and the family trusts. The company’s own disclosures repeatedly identified him as indirectly controlling it, and Homburg’s case theory and evidence did not sufficiently explain the discrepancy.

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