James Mulcahy

Member’s name: James Mulcahy
Date of Hearing: 23 July 2026 
Division: Victoria
Tribunal: Disciplinary

On 23 July 2026 the Disciplinary Tribunal found Mr James Mulcahy breached CPA Australia’s 11 May 2022 Constitution (“the Constitution”) Article 36(a) in that he had “committed, participated in or been involved with an Adverse Event” as defined in:

Complaint 1

Article 76(h) of the Constitution in that he “became the subject of a final adverse finding in relation to the Member’s conduct, competence or recognition by any Court, professional body, statutory or other regulatory authority in any jurisdiction;” with respect to the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) decision of 19 June 2025 to terminate his tax agent registration and impose a non-application period of four (4) years taking effect from 30 January 2026 on the basis that he failed to comply with subsections 30-10(1), 30-10(4), 30-10(5) and 30-10(6) of the Code of Professional Conduct in the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (TASA) (TPB Decision) and that he was no longer a fit and proper person pursuant to subsection 40-5(1).

Background

1. CPA Australia relied on the Tax Practitioners Board decision of 19 June 2025 to terminate Mr Mulcahy’s tax agent registration.
2. The TPB found Mr Mulcahy failed to comply with subsections 30-10(1), 30-10(4), 30-10(5) and 30-10(6) of the Code of Professional Conduct in the Tax Agent Services Act 2009, and found that he was no longer a fit and proper person to remain registered.
3. In a Notification of Decision dated 12 February 2026, the TPB determined to terminate Mr Mulcahy’s registration as a tax agent and imposed a four-year non-application period, effective from 30 January 2026.
4. Mr Mulcahy applied to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) for review, initially obtained an interim stay, the stay was refused on 2 January 2026 with the interim stay to cease on 30 January 2026, and on 9 February 2026 Mr Mulcahy withdrew the review application and the ART dismissed the proceedings.
5. As a consequence, the TPB decision took effect on 30 January 2026 and Mr Mulcahy became ineligible to apply for re-registration until 30 January 2030.

Decision

Mr James Mulcahy attended the Disciplinary Tribunal Hearing and denied the Complaint.

The Disciplinary Tribunal considered the evidence before it and found the Complaint sustained.

Penalty and Conditions

The TPB findings were serious adverse findings about Mr Mulcahy’s conduct and were reasonably capable of having a material adverse effect on CPA Australia’s reputation and standing. The TPB findings included failures to:

• act honestly and with integrity;
• act lawfully and in the best interest of the client;
• maintain adequate arrangements for management of conflicts of interest arising in practice as a registered tax agent or BAS agent; and 
• refrain from disclosing information relating to a client’s affairs to a third party without the client’s authority, unless legally required to do so.

In view of the above, the following penalty was imposed:

Complaint 1:

• Forfeiture of membership, not eligible for readmission for a period of 4 years, with such forfeiture to run concurrently with the separate matter determined by the Disciplinary Tribunal on 23 July 2026.

Costs

Mr Mulcahy was ordered to pay CPA Australia’s combined costs of $39,971.40 for two separate matters Determined by Disciplinary Tribunal on 23 July 2026.