Page 24 - NYLS Magazine • 2014 • Vol. 33, No. 1

From left to right: Diane L. Fahey, Dennis Ventry, Maria Pirrone, and moderator Richard C.E.
Beck discuss debt, taxes, and the economy.

response. “Back in the ’20s, Congress kept

amending the corporate tax provisions
because aggressive taxpayers kept

coming up with all these schemes,” said
Michael L. Schler, a partner at Cravath,

Swaine & Moore LLP, who spoke at the
symposium’s panel on “Perspectives on

the Practice of Tax Law.” Joining Schler
on the panel were Elizabeth Kessenides,

a principal at Berdon LLP; and Megan

Brackney, a partner at Kostelanetz & Fink
LLP who also chairs the Tax Committee

of the New York County Lawyers’
Association. he panel was chaired by amend the [tax] code or he IRS began its crime-busting activities
the regulations, the more in the late 1920s, when President
William P. LaPiana, NYLS’s Rita and
Joseph Solomon Professor of Wills, complicated and confusing Herbert Hoover ordered the IRS to go
ater the notorious gangster Al Capone.
Trusts, and Estates.
things get,” Schler said.
Professor Feld observed that “Capone
he government’s response to tax was prosecuted not to deter people from
Tax enforcers have had one notable
avoidance has been only partially success in recent years. he number
cheating on their tax returns; he was
efective. Whenever Congress and the prosecuted because President Herbert
of aggressive tax shelters has fallen
IRS changed the rules, tax attorneys signiicantly, thanks to government Hoover wanted him in jail, and J. Edgar
uncovered new loopholes in the law. Hoover and Elliot Ness really couldn’t
prosecutions, new tax rules, and judges
“Each [new] rule adds its own ambiguity. who are increasingly viewing these ind a way to do it....Unfortunately, his
here are more and more things to argue prosecution established the precedent
shelters with disfavor, said Ms. Kessenides
about. So you really don’t solve the during that panel.
that the [Internal Revenue] Service
problem just by writing more words,” could be mobilized for a cause, albeit a

Schler said.
he proper tax treatment for debt— worthy one, that was not directly related
including ballooning student loan
Moreover, the frequent to the enforcement of the income tax
debt and home mortgages—is another laws. Since that time.the prosecution
changes to tax rules have contentious issue. hat was the topic at
of racketeers, organized crime igures,
resulted in a byzantine tax a panel moderated by Professor Richard narcotics traickers has continued to
system. “The more you
C.E. Beck, Founding Director of the
be an important feature of criminal tax
NYLS Graduate Tax Program. On the enforcement.”
panel were Professor Diane L. Fahey

of NYLS; Professor Maria Pirrone of U.S. tax policy in a global economy was
St. John’s University Business School; the focus of a panel consisting of Peter

and Professor Dennis Ventry of the H. Blessing, KPMG’s head of cross-
University of California, Davis School border corporate transactions; Professor

of Law.
Reuven Avi-Yonah of University of
Michigan Law School; Professor Diane

In theory, the IRS is committed to hunting Ring of Boston College Law School;
down tax evaders. he reality, however,
Professor Fadi Shaheen of Rutgers School Lawrence S. Feld and Alan I. Appel
present the lunch conversation on the
has oten been diferent, said NYLS of Law-Newark; and Stephen Shay, history of criminal tax enforcement.
Adjunct Professor Lawrence S. Feld, a
former Deputy Assistant Secretary for

solo law practitioner who formerly served International Tax Afairs, U.S. Treasury,
as assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern now Professor of Practice at Harvard Law

District of New York. Instead of seeking to School.
maximize tax collections, the IRS has spent

much of its time and energy acting as just Professor Shay also presented the closing
another law enforcement agency, targeting keynote address. he scheduled closing

criminals whom the government could not speaker—Karen L. Hawkins, Direct of
otherwise prosecute. Joining Professor Feld the Oice of Professional Responsibility

on the dais during his luncheon talk was at the IRS—was not able to attend due
Professor Appel.
to the government shut-down in efect at Stephen Shay presents the closing
keynote address.
the time. •

22 New York Law schooL magaziNe • 2014 • VOL. 33, NO. 1