In March, the International Fiscal Association USA Branch (IFA), the ABA Tax Section, and the Temple Tax & Bankruptcy Law Society hosted a “Careers in Tax Panel,” inviting real world practitioners to speak with students about their experiences in tax law. Four tax lawyers, all working in diverse practice areas, took an hour to discuss their respective career paths, share the benefits of mentorship, and answer specific questions from audience members. Panelists included: Joan Arnold, a partner and the Chair of Troutman Pepper’s Tax and Benefits Practice Group; Laurice Smith, a deputy city solicitor at the City of Philadelphia Law Department; Justin Cupples, a partner at Morgan Lewis; and Nicole Roche, an associate working in international tax at KPMG.
The panelists provided students with unique insights into practice at law firms versus accounting firms, as well as work in tax litigation versus work in a transactional tax practice. Joan Arnold discussed her work advising clients on transactions that involve complex domestic and international entity structures. In this role, she helps clients troubleshoot their problems, which often involves minimizing risk and cost. For many of her clients, help from skilled tax practitioners is essential in structuring their transactions efficiently and in a manner that achieves their commercial goals. She pointed out that active membership in both IFA and the ABA Tax Section were invaluable in the development of her career.
While Joan pursued a career in federal income tax, both Justin Cupples and Laurice Smith center their work around state and local tax issues. Laurice has litigated tax cases on behalf of the city—gaining fast experience and dealing with exciting legal challenges. While in law school, Laurice was sure she did not want to be a litigator and, thus, she was initially surprised to find herself working in a tax controversy role. Mentors have provided Laurice with a helpful lens into what litigation and tax practice is actually like, while supporting her as she navigates spaces that are overwhelmingly male and white. Her positive experience with mentors led Laurice to encourage students to find and nurture similar relationships to help them chart their career paths and proceed with greater confidence.
Justin agreed that mentors have provided him with valuable tools throughout his career—quickly identifying the skills he needed to develop and putting in the time to help him master those skills. After starting his practice in an accounting firm, Justin pivoted to a law firm where he has found more opportunities to “practice law” and bring cases to their ultimate conclusion. For those looking to switch practice areas within tax law, he recommended highlighting soft skills, experience, and passion to learn more about the new practice area.
Justin emphasized that while law firms provide more opportunity to practice law, accounting firms often have more positions and allow lawyers to establish a specialty. In her work at KPMG, Nicole often falls back on what she learned taking tax classes at Temple Law. Though a recent grad, Nicole has enjoyed figuring out the puzzles presented to her every day as an international tax associate in a Big Four accounting firm.
Though their experiences in law and tax vary greatly, all four panelists stressed the importance of mentorship and remaining open to new opportunities. Tax law provides a unique opportunity to cross over between transactional and litigation work, operate in government and business-oriented spaces, and work on traditional “law” issues or accounting and financial services issues. In this diverse space, opportunities are boundless and forever expanding to include more women and minority practitioners. Giving students the opportunity to learn about the reality of tax practice in the real world through events like this is invaluable.
Thank you to Temple’s Tax & Bankruptcy Law Society, the ABA Tax Section, and IFA for sponsoring such a wonderful event and, of course, for providing sandwiches to attendees.