Mitch Renfrew of Barkhamsted, CT and Ryan Hartnett of Whitesboro, NY, won "Best Written Submission" at the 19th Annual American Bar Association Law Student Tax Challenge. The competition was held during the Section of Taxation 2020 Midyear Tax Meeting on January 30-February 1, in Boca Raton, FL.
The Western New England team was one of six finalists selected from more than 80 law schools nationwide to participate in the final J.D. Division rounds, where they presented oral arguments before a panel of distinguished tax lawyers and tax court judges. Each two-person team was challenged to solve a complex business problem that might arise in everyday tax practice. Teams are initially evaluated on two criteria: a memorandum to a senior partner and a letter to a client explaining the result.
This award-winning team builds on a legacy of successful Tax challenge teams coached by Professor Frederick Royal, a nationally renowned tax scholar and director of the LLM and Master's in Elder Law and Estate Planning.
"The Tax Challenge is a national competition," explains Royal. "Our teams have done extremely well having finished in first place twice, in second place twice, and they have also won the prize for Best Written Submission twice. I have been very fortunate to coach a number of gifted student teams who have competed in the Student Tax Challenge sponsored by ABA Section of Taxation."
The mission of the ABA Section of Taxation is to serve its members and the public by providing education about taxes and tax systems, and by providing leadership to support the development of an equitable, efficient and workable tax system.
