{"id":1025,"date":"2017-02-02T16:04:23","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T16:04:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rdactionconsultant.com\/en\/?p=1025"},"modified":"2025-11-27T18:29:37","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T18:29:37","slug":"sred-murphys-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rdactionconsultant.com\/en\/blog\/sred-murphys-law\/","title":{"rendered":"SR & ED and Murphy’s Law"},"content":{"rendered":"
\nThere are several ways to explain the R & D tax credit. Today we go with humor. It is, of course, a very serious subject. But it is necessary, sometimes, to prove by the absurd if we want to bring out the sad but deep reality.<\/p>\n

Several years ago I read an article where the author applied Murphy’s law to SR & ED. Unfortunately, I have not kept the exact reference, so I can not give him the credit due to him and I apologize very humbly. On the other hand, it remains that his observations are very wise and humorous stupidities today. They reflect the reality, the subtlety and the complexity of the SR & ED claim process. Do not take these examples to the first degree. The second meaning is definitely more funny, … and closer to reality.<\/p>\n

\u00ab When it comes to SR&ED tax credits, if anything can go wrong, it will \u00bb<\/div>\n

I have modified some of the examples. So it has become a collective creation that I share with you today.<\/p>\n

You’ve all heard about Murphy’s Law. “If anything can go wrong, it will”. Here are some variations of this law applied to SR & ED. Let’s have fun …<\/p>\n

Murphy’s Law applied to SR & ED<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Anyone who considers himself an “expert” does not yet know the details.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      \n
    1. Desk reviews give a first impression. First impressions are always false.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
        \n
      1. Companies with the best time sheets do the least amount of SR & ED.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
          \n
        1. Companies with the worst documentations are most likely to be innovation leaders in their industry.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
            \n
          1. The archeology of retroactive claims is not an exact science.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
              \n
            1. The business owner’s definition of SR & ED expands with each refund check. The employee\u2019s definition shrinks after each audit.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                \n
              1. If it seems too good to be true that the new claimant will make a very large claim for SR & ED, then it’s probably true.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                  \n
                1. Mathematics of contingency rates: 25% of nothing still gives nothing.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                    \n
                  1. SR & ED is expanding at each recession, declining with every cycle of economic growth. True developers have too much work to take this into account.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                      \n
                    1. The best SR & ED work is always older than the 18-month limit.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                        \n
                      1. One always sees more clearly when working for the dark side of the force.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                        Do you know the author of these observations? Can you give me the reference? I will be happy to update this page and pay due tribute to him.<\/p>\n

                        Do you have any other anecdotes, or stupid truths about SR & ED? Want to share them with us?<\/p>\n

                        Did you like your reading? Tell us so. What should be added? What topics are you interested in? You did not like this reading? Tell us so. What have you less appreciated in this text?<\/p><\/div>\n

                        <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                        There are several ways to explain the R & D tax credit. Today we go with humor. It is, of course, a very serious subject. But it is necessary, sometimes, to prove by the absurd if we want to bring out the sad but deep reality. Several years ago I read an article where the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":1026,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[93],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interpretation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSR & ED and Murphy's Law | R&D Action Consultant<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Murphy said \u00ab If anything can go wrong, it will ". 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