Mac & Mac – Tax Court of Canada denies SR&ED claims because of inadequate notes of the work done

Mac & Mac was approached by a potential client to use its expertise in hydrodemolition to develop a technique to remove the worn inner linings from pipelines, so that the necessity of replacing them would be eliminated. Mac & Mac used numerous different approaches to applying high-pressure water to this end. In denying Mac & Mac’s SR&ED claims, Graham J stated:

Mac & Mac’s claims … do not meet the last test [in Northwest Hydraulic which] … requires Mac & Mac to have kept detailed records of hypotheses, tests and results as the work progressed.

… There is simply no way that someone, even someone very experienced in the industry, could hope to replicate or confirm Mac & Mac’s results from [its] notes.

Neal Armstrong. Summary of Mac & Mac Hydrodemolition Services Inc. v. The Queen, 2017 TCC 256 under s. 248(1) - SR&ED.