Pratte, J [ORALLY]:—We do not need to hear you, Mr Gauthier.
The appellant’s first two arguments assumed that the decision rendered by this Court in The Queen v Atkins ([1976] CTC 497; 76 DTC 6258) was wrong. While we do not doubt that this Court has the power to reconsider and refuse to follow one of its previous decisions, we are of opinion that we should do so only when we are convinced that our previous decision was wrong. Here, in spite of Mr Lefebvre’s able argument, we do not have that conviction.
Mr Lefebvre’s last contention, that the amount received by the taxpayer was a taxable capital gain, cannot, in our opinion, be considered. That argument was not made in the Trial Division and was put forward for the first time in appeal. Had it been made earlier, evidence could perhaps have been adduced to show that the taxpayer had incurred costs towards the acquisition or disposition of his right to receive damages. Indeed, it is by no means clear that he did not incur any such costs.
The appeal will therefore be dismissed with costs.