WilmerHale tax partner appointed chair of ABA’s Tax Section
William J. Wilkins, a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm WilmerHale, has been selected to chair the American Bar Association’s Section of Taxation, the nation’s largest organization of tax lawyers.
Wilkins will serve a one-year term, to be succeeded by Karen L. Hawkins of the
Oakland, Calif., firm Taggart & Hawkins, who was chosen to serve as chair-elect.
Wilkins, who previously served as the ABA Tax Section’s chair-elect, works in
WilmerHale’s tax group, advising clients on tax aspects of business transactions
and counseling nonprofits on tax and governance issues. Wilkins has represented clients before Congress, the Internal Revenue Service and Department of the Treasury on a variety of matters.
Prior to joining WilmerHale, Wilkins served on the staff of the U.S. Senate
Committee on Finance (1981-1998), including as staff director and chief counsel of the committee (1987-1988). Wilkins has previously served in several leadership positions within the Tax Section, including as its vice chair of government relations, its vice chair of communications and as chair of two section committees.
Karen L. Hawkins is a founder and partner in the Oakland, Calif., law firm
Taggart & Hawkins, A.P.C. She has long been active with the ABA Section of Taxation and the State Bar of California Taxation Section. She is the recipient of the ABA Section of Taxation’s 2004 Janet Spragens Pro Bono Award.
The American Bar Association Section of Taxation is the largest professional
association of tax lawyers, with approximately 21,000 members nationwide. Its goals include helping taxpayers better understand their rights and obligations under the tax laws and working to achieve a simplified tax system that is equitable and efficient. With more than 413,000 members, the American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership organization in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law.