Speakers:

LG Brooks is an enrolled agent, the Senior Consultant of The Tax Practice, Inc., located in Dallas, Texas. LG has been in the field of taxation for more than 25 years and has been in practice full time since 1990. His areas of practice include Tax Representation, Tax Consulting, and Pre-Tax Court Litigation Support Services. LG continues to provide tax presentations for numerous tax & accounting societies and has made presentations at several Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Annual Tax Forums. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bishop College at Dallas, Texas in 1977,  is a Fellow of the National Tax Practice Institute (NTPI) and is currently a faculty member of the National Tax Practice Institute (NTPI). LG is extremely proud and honored to be an Enrolled Agent. He may be reached at 972.223.4000.

Bryan Camp -  In 1988, after earning his J.D. and M.A., Professor Camp clerked for the Honorable John P. Wiese of what is now called the Court for Federal Claims.  He worked on tax, takings, and government contract cases.  Then, as an Assistant County Attorney for Arlington, Virginia, he experienced the myriad delights of providing legal counsel to a local government ranging from litigating various civil matters to practicing what he likes to call "transactional constitutional law."  Professor Camp left public service briefly to work as an associate in a small Washington D. C. firm.  There he divided his time between commercial law, contract law and estate planning. 

In 1993, after earning his LL.M., Professor Camp returned to public service as a Senior Docket Attorney in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel's National Office in Washington, D.C.  There he spent eight years delving into the details of subtitle F of the Internal Revenue Code and the subtleties of the Bankruptcy Code, dispensing advice to IRS field attorneys across the country and helping devise appropriate responses to adverse judicial opinions.  In 1997 and 1998 Professor Camp was privileged to be a fly on the wall when Congress ground out the Internal Revenue Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 (RRA).  He participated in the IRS efforts to affect that legislation.  After the RRA's enactment, Professor Camp led the regulatory response to one of the most complicated of the RRA provisions. The resulting proposed regulations was published in the Federal Register on January 2, 2001.  During his tenure at the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, Professor Camp received numerous awards, the last one being the 2000 Attorney of the Year for the General Litigation Division.

In 2001, Professor Camp joined Texas Tech.  He lectures and writes on tax law, tax administration, administrative law, bankruptcy, statutory interpretation, constitutional law and jurisprudence. He is the author of over 30 published articles and treatise chapters, plus numerous shorter works.  His scholarship on taxation of cyberspace has taken him to London and Berlin to advise government agencies.  Since 2004 he has written 18 articles on tax administration and policy for Tax Notes, the premier national publication devoted solely to tax issues.  In addition, his long-standing and continuing interest in United States legal intellectual history and social history is reflected in his selection to participate in the 2003 Supreme Court Historical Society's summer seminar and in scholarly presentations before the New York Historical Society and Haverford College.

During his time at Texas Tech, Professor Camp has received consistent recognition for his scholarship from both within and without the Law School.  In 2007 he was named the Law School's Outstanding Researcher.  In 2008, he was awarded the George H. Mahon Professorship.  In 2009, he was elected into the American Law Institute.  In 2010, the Texas Bar Foundation recognized Professor Camp for Best Law Review Article published in Texas in 2009.  Also in 2010, Professor Camp was again named as the Law School's Outstanding Researcher.

Professor Camp is active in the American Bar Association Section of Taxation, In addition to giving over 30 CLE presentations to the ABA and other groups since 2003, he was honored to chair the Individual and Family Taxation Committee between 2007 and 2009.  He currently serves on the editorial board of the Practicing Tax Lawyer.

Kyle Coleman's practice concentrates on federal tax related controversy matters, including litigation in Federal District Court, the United States Tax Courts and the Court of Federal Claims. Mr. Coleman also represents taxpayers in IRS audits, appeals and collection actions. Kyle has been admitted to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Bar, the Northern District of Texas, the Eastern District of Texas, the District of Colorado and the United States Tax Court. In addition to tax controversy, Mr. Coleman also represents clients in estate and business planning as well as asset protection. His practice includes entity formation, asset transfers, wills and trusts. Kyle may be reached at 972.661.1040.

Elizabeth A. Copeland - Elizabeth works on all matters pertaining to Federal and State income taxation, both planning and tax conroversiers.  She has expertise in dealing with the Internal Revenue Service at the administrative appeals leval and in litigatio.  elizabeth focuses on assisting businesses in determining the types of entities that best suit their needs, from the perspectives of tax savings and operational efficiency.  She also assists taxpayers with foreign account disclosures, employment tax issues and with criminal tax matters.

Elizabeth's representative experience incluudes securing the taxpayer victory in a major clothing company case; representing an individual in the U.S. Tax Court against the IRS Commissioner, winning government concessions after trial; representing a livestock company against the Commisisoner securing a taxpayer victory and settling numerous U.S. Tax Court cases in favor of the taxpayer.  Elizabeth has written many articles and made many presentations. 

Katherine E David is an attorney at Oppenheimer Blend specializing in Tax.  She has been Named to the prestigious list of the 2005-2011 Texas Rising Stars in the area of Tax, published in the Texas Monthly magazine.  She was also recognized by Scene in SA magazine as a Rising Star in San Antonio's Best Lawyers in San Antonio (2005 - 2009).  She is board certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.  She was awarded the Nolan Fellowships award by the American Bar Association Section of Taxation in 2010.  She has many professional and community affiliations.  

C. Clinton Davis, Jr. practices law in the Dallas, Texas law firm of Krage & Janvey, L.L.P.  He was licensed in Texas in 1982, has been Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 1988 and is a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas.  He has also been licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in Texas since 1980 and as an attorney in Florida since 1980.  Mr. Davis attended law school at Southern Methodist University and received his Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, in 1980.  At SMU, Mr. Davis was selected to membership in the Order of the Coif, an honor society limited to graduates in the top 10% of the graduating class.  Mr. Davis received his bachelor of science degree in accounting from Northwestern State University of Louisiana where he graduated first in his class.  Mr. Davis is a frequent speaker at CPE programs and conferences.  He is the author of the TSCPA programs Principles of LLC and Partnership Taxation:  An Introduction to Subchapter K, Navigating the LLC and Partnership Allocation and Basis Minefield, and LLC and Partnership Taxation for the Sophisticated Practitioner.  He is also a frequent speaker and moderator for the Accountants' Continuing Professional Education Network (sponsored by the TSCPA and other state CPA societies) on various topics including tax planning, choice of entity and partnerships.  He has also been a speaker and moderator for CLE Options, a Network for CLE (sponsored by the State Bar of Texas) on partnership and LLC topics and has recorded an audio CLE course on understanding Section 704(b) for the State Bar of Texas Tax Section.

Greta Hicks, former IRS manager and CPA, concentrates on "Solutions to IRS Problems." Ms. Hicks, well-versed in the inner-workings of the IRS, represents taxpayers before the IRS and acts as a consultant, researcher, advisor and technical support person to other tax professionals and corporate tax departments. Greta has formed TAX Educators, Inc. to provide informational and educational materials to tax practitioners. She conducts seminars nationally on the subject of IRS policies and procedures for professional societies, commercial CPE providers and educational institutions such as Texas Society of CPAs, California CPA Education Foundation, Bell Learning, Gear Up and webinars for Thomson Reuters. Greta may be reached at 713.681.6398. 

Karen E. Hughes, Senior Counsel at Jackson Walker L.L.P., focuses primarily on income tax planning for complex business transactions.  With a variety of experience representing public and private corporations and their shareholders, as well as pass- through entities and their owners,  Ms. Hughes brings value to her clients through both depth and breadth of knowledge on income tax matters.  Ms. Hughes also regularly handles cross- border transactions and the wide- ranging issues that surface in such situations, such as withholding and the application of income tax treaties.  Ms. Hughes has been a member of the Board of Directors of Shakespeare Dallas since 2008, having served as Treasurer and Vice-Chair, and currently serving as Board Chair.

Larry Jones advises and represents clients in IRS tax controversies which include audits, appeals, collections, criminal tax investigations, and civil and criminal tax litigation. Larry represents tax professionals before the Office of Professional Responsibility.  He advises and assists corporations and individual businesses by furnishing general legal services necessary to the proper conduct of their business operations, and represents clients in the purchase and sale of businesses.  He is committed to excellence in the practice of law and offers his clients timely, effective and efficient personalized service.

Prior to entering private practice, Larry was a Trial Attorney with the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. During his time there, he received substantial trial experience in tax cases. Larry represents taxpayers before all levels of the IRS, and in litigation against the IRS. Larry has successfully represented tax professionals facing proposed sanctions by the Office of Professional Responsibility.  He is a partner in the law firm of Townsend & Jones, LLP, which has offices in Dallas and Houston. Larry is the past chairperson of the IRS North Texas district Director's Practitioner Liaison Committee, Larry is Director of the Federal Taxpayers Clinic at SMU Dedman School of Law and teaches Federal Tax Procedure at the Law School. Larry and his partner, Jack Townsend, are in Chambers USA: American’s Leading Lawyers for business and were chosen as Texas Super Lawyers by Texas Monthly.

Larry is a teacher, author, recognized public speaker and authority on tax controversy matters, and how to effectively deal with the IRS.  He has taught Criminal Tax Fraud and Taxation of Property Dispositions at the SMU Dedman School of Law.  Larry has developed, written, and taught courses for various professional organizations involving all aspects of the IRS including but not limited to audits, appeals, collections, and negotiating with the IRS.  In the past Larry has co-sponsored the Forum on Doing Business with the IRS with the Texas Society of CPAs.

Larry is a member of the Advisory Board of the Journal of Tax Practice and Procedure published by CCH and he writes a column on examination issues for this publication. Larry has published various articles on dealing with the IRS. He is a co-author of Guide to Dealing With The IRS published by Practitioners Publishing Co. Larry may be reached at 214.696.2661.

Audrey Morris is an Associate Area Counsel for the Small Business/Self-Employed Division of the I.R.S. Office of Cheif Counsel in Dallas.  Audrey has been with Chief Counsel since 1991, after receiving her J.D. from the University of Miami School of Law in 1990.  Prior to working for I.R.S. Counsel, Audrey spent five years as an Internal Revenue Agent in Miami.

Ms. Morris supervises a group of eight attorneys and paralegals and her work focuses on the areas of:  Civil Fraud; Abusive Schemes; First Amendment Issues; Offshore Credit Cards; Offshore Evidence and Holdings; Innocent Spouse; Summonses; Third Party Contacts; Estate Tax and Offers in Compromise.  Audrey is a frequent speaker at national Counsel and I.R.S. training sessions and IVTs, seminars conducted by the outside bar, and colleges and university throughout Texas.  Ms. Morris has been repeatedly recognized for her outstanding work with the Office of Chief Counsel, Including being named SB/SE Attorney of the Year for 2001, receiving a 2005 Chief Counsel Instructor Excellence Award, and being named Counsel's 2009 National Instructor of the Year.

Ms. Morris practices, primarily, in the United States Tax Court and the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, but she is also admitted to practice before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court.

Nina Olson serves as an advocate for taxpayers to the IRS and Congress.  She leads the Taxpayer Advocate Service, a nationwide organization of approximately 2,000 taxpayer advocates who help U.S. taxpayers resolve problems and work with the IRS to correct systemic and procedural problems.

Nina's work as the "voice of the taxpayers" at the IRS has won national acclaim:  She is a member of the American College of Tax Counsel, and delivered the group's prestigious Griswold Lecture in January 2010.  The non-profit Tax Foundation selected her to receive its Public Sector Distinguished Service Award in 2007.  Accounting Today magazine named her one of its Top 100 Most Influential People in the accounting profession each year since 2004.  In January 2005, Money magazine named her one of the 12 "Class Acts of 2004."

Nina is an attorney licensed in Virginia and North Carolina.  She was the founder and Executive Director of The Community Tax Law project, the first independent 501(c)(3) low income taxpayer clinic in the United States.  The Community Tax Law Project provides free legal services to Virginia low income taxpayers in federal, state, and local tax disputes.

Prior to her appointment as the NTA in January 2001, Nina maintained a private law practice, concentrating in tax controversy representation.  From 1975 until 1991, she owned and operated Accounting, Tax & Information Services, a tax planning and preparation firm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.  Nina served as the chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Taxation's Low Income Taxpayer's Committee as well as the Pro Se/Pro Bono Task Force of the ABA Tax Section's Court Procedure Committee.  Nina is the 1999 recipient of both the Virginia Bar Associations' Pro Bono Publico Award and the City of Richmond Bar Association's Pro Bono Award. 

Nina graduated from Bryn Mawr College cum laude with an A.B. in Fine Arts. She received her J.D. cum laude from North Carolina Central School of Law and her Masters of Law in Taxation, with distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center. Nina has served as an adjunct professor at several law schools. She is currently an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center.

Heather M. Pesikoff  has over 10 years of experience in tax planning and controversy. Her client base ranges from small business owners to Fortune 500 companies in all industries.  Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, Heather spent more than 9 years with a "big 4" accounting firm.  While at a "big 4", Ms. Pesikoff was in the Washington National Tax Group and focused her practice on state and Federal tax planning and controversy issues.

Ms. Pesikoff possesses considerable experience in employment tax and has advised clients on strategies to maximize savings and avoid compliance errors.  She advises clients on state and Federal employment tax compliance and controversy issues such as payroll compliance, audit defense, trust fund penalties, merger and acquisition due diligence, executive compensation, household employment, worker classification, fringe benefits, third party relationships, stock based compensation, and severance payments. Her experience includes providing advice on the suitability of refunds, credits and penalty abatements.  Ms. Pesikoff has a high success rate with negotiations with both state and Federal agencies.  Ms. Pesikoff has been a guest speaker for the American Payroll Association.

Ira B. Shepard was a professor at the University of Houston Law Center from 1975 to 2011, where he is now an emeritus professor of law.  Before that, he taught at the University of Georgia School of Law (1971-75); he was a visiting professor at the University of North Carolina Law School, 1980 - 81.

He received his baccalaureate degree from Harvard College in 1958 and his law degree from Harvard University in 1964, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.  He practiced in New York Cith with the firm of Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison from 1965 to 1971.

He was the Special Advisor to the Southern Federal Tax Institute from 1974 to 2010.  He has chaired the Continuing Legal Education and Research Committee of the American Bar Association Tax Section and the planning committee for the University of Texas Tax Conference, and has been president of the Wednesday Tax Forum and the council of the Houston Bar Association Tax Section.  He is a fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel.

He regularly speaks on recent tax developments at numerous tax institutes, including the University of Denver Tax Institute, the University of Texas Tax Conference, University of North Carolina Tax Institute, the American Institute on Federal Taxation, the Tax Alliance Conference, the Southern Federal Tax Institute, the Tennessee Federal Tax Institute, the Tulane Tax Institute, the Maryland Tax Institute, and the William and Mary Tax Conference.  He also speaks regularly at programs sponsored by Tax Executives Institute, The American Petroleum Institute, the Houston Bar Association Tax Section, the Dallas Bar Association Tax Section, the State Bar of Texas, the Austin Tax Forum, the Austin Chapter of the Texas Society of CPAs, and the Wednesday Tax Forum.  He has also lectured at the Virginia Tax Conference, the Great Lakes Federal Tax Institute, the University of Houston Law Foundation, the State Bar of Michigan Tax Section, the New Mexico Tax Conference, the New Mexico Tax Institute, the New Mexico Tax Symposium, the Alabama Tax Conference, the Kentucky Tax Institute, the Lewis & Clark Tax Institute, the Ohio [AICPA] Tax Institute, the Columbus (Ohio) Tax Institute, the NYU Tax Institute, and the Hawaii Tax Institute, as well as on programs sponsored by ALI-ABA, Practicing Law Institute, the IRS and the Federal Bar Association.

John "Jack" Townsend's practice is focused on civil and criminal federal income tax controversy matters.  He practices in the Houston office of Townsend & Jones, L.L.P.  He received his law degree from the University of Virginia in 1967 and his Master of Laws in Taxation from New York University in 1969.

From 1969 through 1977, Jack was a Trial Attorney in the Tax Division of the United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. While with the Tax Division, Jack handled cases in the United States Courts of Appeals, with incidental work on briefs in opposition in the Supreme Court, from 1969 through 1974, and handled trials in the United States District Courts from 1974 through March 1977. Jack has been in the private practice of law in Houston, Texas since leaving the Tax Division and currently focuses his practice principally upon tax controversy and tax litigation matters.