CLA’s Taxation Section Offers Education, Recognition, and Connection at 2024 Annual Meeting of the Tax Bar and Tax Policy Conference

California Lawyers Association’s (CLA) Taxation Section is California’s only statewide tax bar association. It’s 3,000 members include, not only attorneys, but accountants, state and local tax administrators, financial planners, pension and trust administrators, and other tax specialists. The Anaheim Hilton was the setting for this group’s Annual Meeting and Conference, held from November 6-8, 2024, offering participants more than 16 hours of MCLE in a variety of areas including technology in the practice of law, trust and probate law, and legal specialization in tax law and estate planning.

But another type of education also took place in the form of networking and open dialogue among professionals, colleagues, and new friends.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to network and learn. Our panels were very well attended and engaging,” said Myriam Bouaziz, CLA’s Annual Meeting and Tax Policy Conference Co-Chair.

The conference had 34 panels including discussions about diversity, equity, and inclusion, navigating resources for taxpayers at the state tax agencies, and a panel which compared computerized AI answers to legal questions against expert tax attorneys and their knowledge.

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Chief Counsel, Margie Rollinson, served as keynote speaker for the conference. Rollinson is the 49th IRS Chief Counsel and the first woman ever to be nominated and confirmed to the position. She also serves as Assistant General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Treasury.

Rollinson, with an extensive career as a tax consultant before moving up the ranks at the IRS, shared her perspective about balancing modernization with access, noting that attorneys need to meet the taxpayer “where they are.” She initially served as the Deputy Associate Chief Counsel (International), and subsequently, the Associate Chief Counsel (International) where she provided guidance to the IRS, Treasury, and the Department of Justice on international tax issues.

An elegant awards banquet and ceremony was a featured conference event. CLA’s Taxation Section recognized three outstanding lawyers for their legal work in their respective tax areas of practice. Receiving the Ben Miller Award was Richard J. Ayoob, a partner in the Glendale, California law firm of Ajalat, Polley, Ayoob, Matarese & Broege which limits its practice to matters involving state and local taxation. Ayoob has served as Chairman of the State and Local Tax Committees of the Taxation Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and of the Taxation Section of the California State Bar, and as a member of the State Bar Taxation Section Executive Committee. Ayoob served on the Board of Governors of the Institute for Professionals in Taxation, has appeared at numerous of the Institute’s symposia and its Annual Conference, and has received the Institute’s Distinguished Service Award.

Ellen Aprill, Senior Scholar in Residence at the Lowell Milken Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofits, was honored with the Joanne M. Garvey Award. Aprill is a Professor Emerita at LMU Loyola Law School. She is a Fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel, a member of the American Law Institute, the board of the American Tax Policy Institute, the Executive Committee of the USC Federal Tax Institute, and the Faculty Advisory Board of the Tannenwald Foundation for Excellence in Tax Scholarship. Aprill formerly served as Vice Chair of the ABA Section of Taxation, Chair of the Los Angeles County Bar Tax Section, a member of the Board of Advisors of New York University National Center on Philanthropy and Law, and an advisor on the American Law Institute Restatement of the Law, Charitable Nonprofit Organizations. She co-founded the annual Western Conference on Tax-Exempt Organizations, now in its 27th year and is frequently quoted in the media, including the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and Politico.

CLA’s Taxation Section presented the V. Judson Klein Award to Lorraine Y. Yu, the Deputy Area Counsel (Criminal Tax) for the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, Criminal Tax, Area 6. As Deputy Area Counsel, Yu assists the Area Counsel (Criminal Tax) and supervises attorneys who provide legal advice to IRS Criminal Investigation’s Los Angeles, Oakland, and Seattle Field Offices. Prior to becoming Deputy Area Counsel, Yu worked as a Criminal Tax Attorney, providing advice to IRS Criminal Investigation’s Los Angeles Field Office. She joined the Executive Committee of the California Lawyers Association (CLA) Tax Section in 2017. As a member of the Executive Committee, Yu served as a Co-Chair of Standing Committee Outreach and Development in 2018 and 2019 and Co-Chair of the Tax Section Annual Meeting and Tax Policy Conference in 2020. She continues to volunteer as an Advisor to the Executive Committee.

“I think our attendees were very inspired by the speeches each award recipient gave,” said Bouaziz, reflecting on the evening. “Our honorees discussed their own life experiences and  reflected the diversity of the Tax Bar.”

Section leaders and members in attendance over the three-day meeting and conference shared their thoughts on the importance of the gathering.

“It’s great to spend time with colleagues from all around the state,” said one member. “We are all busy, but this is an opportunity to learn from each other.”

Another attendee commented, “I appreciate the work that goes into putting on this event. The speakers are outstanding, and I will go back to my office with a fresh perspective on my practice.”

To learn more about CLA’s Taxation Section, visit: https://calawyers.org/section/taxation/.