Law360 Canada ( July 26, 2018, 9:05 AM EDT) -- Appeal by Shaw Cable Systems Limited, Shaw Communications Inc. and DBA Shaw Cablesystems G.P. (Shaw) from a decision finding it liable for payment of provincial sales tax (PST). Shaw self-assessed and remitted $1,666,016 in tax on its purchase of tangible personal property (TPP), namely paper and materials related to paper invoices that they sent from Alberta to customers in British Columbia (B.C.) between 2005 and 2009. Shaw contended that the tax burden fell on the final or end user of the paper invoices, namely its B.C. customers who elected to receive paper over electronic invoices. It acknowledged that it did not charge an additional fee to those customers for the paper invoices and that the prices it charged for its services were the same for both sets of customers. It said, however, that its prices were calculated based on Shaw recovering all of its business expenses, which included the cost of the paper invoices, plus a mark-up for its profit. Shaw maintained that the cost of the paper invoices was recouped from its customers when they paid their monthly charges for Shaw's telecommunication services on which PST was charged and remitted, and the payment of the monthly charges constituted a sale of TPP to those B.C. customers. The respondent Province of British Columbia submitted that Shaw was liable for the PST because its sole purpose for mailing the paper invoices to its B.C. customers who requested that form of communication was to trigger their obligation to pay the charges for the telecommunication services they had contracted for from Shaw. The chambers judge found that Shaw was the user of the invoices for tax purposes and that the customer was not the end user. The judge further found that the invoice contained information Shaw intended to communicate to the paper invoice customer. The customer’s use of the invoice after it was delivered was not material. The only purpose of the invoice was to trigger payment. The paper invoice customers did not pay anything of commercial value to obtain the paper invoice, and Shaw did not charge for the paper invoices....