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Richard
A. Shaw is always prepared. This nationally renowned business and tax law specialist
learned this early as an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America.
"In the Boy Scouts, I learned the value of dedication and sense of responsibility
necessary to become successful in life's endeavors, whether in business, personal
or community affairs," Shaw said.
As
a youth he was raised in a military family, where he lived in such diverse places
as Georgia, Oregon, and Japan, where he graduated from high school.
An adjunct law professor and a well-respected figure in the legal community, Shaw
began a career in law and leadership early in life.
He began at the University of Oregon, where he was an R.O.T.C. Distinguished Military
Graduate, and then graduated from the University of Oregon Law School in 1962,
having served as an editor of the Oregon Law Review. From there, Shaw attended
New York University School of Law's master in taxation law program (LL.M.) on
a graduate teaching fellowship.
He began practice with a three-year stint at the Pentagon as a captain in the
Army Judge Advocate General's Corps, where he specialized in tax and procurement
law.
Shaw has practiced in San Diego for almost 35 years and has been a partner with
Higgs Fletcher & Mack since 2000. He specializes in business and tax planning,
estate planning, and tax controversy. He is a California certified taxation law
specialist.
One of Shaw's main specialties is the development and operation of closely held
businesses. This frequently involves the use of S corporations, limited liability
companies, and partnerships that particularly benefit small businesses. Shaw has
a special expertise in S corporations, having testified before Congress on corporate
tax reform.
He explains that businesses should be designed and operated to minimize their
tax burden. Shaw often quotes the views of Judge Learned Hand of the U.S. District
Court and the U.S. Circuit Court: "Anyone may so arrange his affairs that
his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern
which will best pay the Treasury; there is not even a patriotic duty to increase
one's taxes . . .".
Shaw teaches classes and seminars nationwide, educating students, business owners,
and other lawyers about the opportunities and limitations of business and tax
law. He is a distinguished adjunct law professor at the University of San Diego
School of Law where he has taught business and taxation planning for two decades.
He also lectures frequently around the country on the subject of legal ethics
and professional responsibility. Shaw is currently an editor of the national Business
Entities law journal and is on the advisory board of the NYU Tax Institute.
He finds that his practice frequently encompasses extensive estate planning and
business succession planning for his clients.
Shaw also has a large tax controversy litigation practice, where he handles tax
disputes with the IRS and in the U.S. Tax Court and in other federal courts.
As a result of his background and knowledge, Shaw frequently serves as an expert
witness on taxation, corporate, partnership, securities, and professional responsibility
matters.
Shaw is presently chair of the American Bar Retirement Association. ABRA, as it
is known, is responsible for management of the retirement plans of 6,000 law firms
handling $4 billion in assets.
Perhaps his most significant accomplishment is the position that awaits him in
2003. Shaw is currently chair-elect of the American Bar Association Section of
Taxation and will step into the leadership role of the 20,000-member tax lawyer
organization next year. Shaw has earlier served as vice-chair of the tax section,
where he has been responsible for education and professional tax services throughout
the United States.
This new position will require a significant involvement with the IRS, the Treasury
Department, Department of Justice, and Congress concerning the administration
and development of tax policies. Shaw indicates that his primary goals will include
simplification of our tax laws and the closure of abusive tax shelters that have
recently caused havoc in the economic community.
Further proof of Shaw's standing in the legal community is the number of organizations
that he has chaired. These include the California State Bar Tax Section, the Western
Region Tax Bar, and the San Diego County Bar Business Section. He is also a regent
for the American College of Tax Counsel.
The San Diego community is fortunate that Shaw believes that each of us has a
responsibility to give back to our own community, traits he attributes to values
learned in the Boy Scouts and in the military.
Shaw has been very active in the Boy Scouts where he has chaired the 30,000-member
San Diego County Council, is a past president of the Eagle Scout Alumni Association,
and served on the staffs of two national and one world scouting jamboree. He recently
brokered a 40-year lease for the Boy Scouts in Balboa Park with the city of San
Diego. A National Court of Honor has honored him as a Distinguished Eagle Scout.
Other organizations to which Shaw dedicates his time include the downtown San
Diego Kiwanis Club. As president he was instrumental in inducing Kiwanis International
to admit women as members to the community service organization. He has also served
as chair of the San Diego Corporate Finance Council, the Kiwanis Foundation, and
San Diego Laurels for Leaders Foundation, which honors San Diego County high school
student body presidents. He was a founding incorporator of the San Diego County
Bar Foundation.
For more information about Shaw or to discuss business organization or tax or
estate planning opportunities, please contact him at 619-236-1551 or shawr@higgslaw.com.
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