Bowman
T.C.J.:
This
is
an
appeal
from
an
assessment
for
the
1993
taxation
year
whereby
the
Minister
of
National
Revenue
denied
to
the
appellant
the
disability
tax
credit
under
section
118.3.
The
appellant
was
represented
by
his
wife,
Muriel
Gertie
Baker,
who
was
the
only
witness.
Mr.
Baker
did
not
appear
although
I
invited
Mrs.
Baker
to
call
him
as
a
witness.
It
is
always
much
more
difficult
for
a
court
to
assess
an
appellant’s
impairment
without
observing
him
or
her
and
hearing
directly
from
the
person
whose
disability
is
the
subject
of
the
appeal.
Second
hand
evidence
from
a
spouse
or
other
knowledgeable
person,
while
admissible
and
in
some
cases
persuasive,
is
less
satisfactory
in
cases
of
this
type.
Obviously,
there
are
cases
where
a
person
whose
impairment
is
in
question
may
be
unable
to
testify
because
his
or
her
age
or
physical
or
mental
state
will
prevent
it,
but
this
does
not
appear
to
be
such
a
Case.
The
claim
is
based
upon
the
difficulties
that
the
appellant
has
in
dressing
himself
and
in
walking,
attributable
to
severe
degenerative
osteoarthritis
in
the
lumbar
region.
The
certificate
filed
with
the
return
of
income
and
signed
by
a
physician
does
not
certify
that
the
physician
is
of
the
opinion
that
the
appellant
suffered
from
a
severe
and
prolonged
physical
or
mental
impairment
that
markedly
affected
the
appellant’s
ability
to
perform
a
basic
task
of
daily
living.
This
point
was
not
raised
in
the
reply
to
the
notice
of
appeal
and
it
is
impossible
to
know
whether
the
physician’s
failure
to
check
the
appropriate
box
on
the
form
was
deliberate
or
inadvertent.
I
prefer
to
put
my
decision
on
the
basis
of
the
evidence
adduced
before
me.
Mrs.
Baker
testified
that
her
husband
has
worked
in
the
woods
but
a
number
of
years
ago,
he
was
unable
to
continue
to
do
so
because
he
developed
severe
degenerative
osteoarthritis.
She
testified
that
he
walks
slowly
and
that
it
takes
him
a
“couple
of
minutes”
to
put
on
his
socks
and
trousers.
The
problem
that
I
have
with
this
case
is
that
I
do
not
think
the
evidence
goes
far
enough
to
establish
that
in
1993
Mr.
Baker’s
disability
was
sufficiently
advanced
to
meet
the
somewhat
narrow
criteria
of
sections
118.3
and
118.4.
Mrs.
Baker
stated
that
her
husband’s
condition
today
is
“much
worse”
than
it
was
in
1993.
I
am
simply
unable
on
the
evidence
before
me
to
assess
the
degree
of
severity
of
his
condition
in
that
year.
It
may
well
be
that
he
qualifies
today
for
the
disability
tax
credit.
If
he
decides
to
claim
it,
he
should
ensure
that
the
certificate
that
he
files
is
properly
signed
and
completed
by
a
medical
person
and,
if
the
credit
is
denied
him,
he
should
make
every
effort
to
appear
personally
in
court,
unless
of
course
his
medical
condition
prevents
him
from
doing
so.
The
appeal
is
dismissed.
Appeal
dismissed.
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