Prominent tax controversy lawyer Gary Wilcox joins Mayer Brown’s Washington DC office

Mayer Brown announced today that Gary Wilcox has joined its Tax Controversy & Transfer Pricing practice as a partner in Washington DC. Before coming to Mayer Brown, Mr. Wilcox held leadership positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and another international law firm, and served as the Deputy Chief Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Mr. Wilcox has many years of experience handling high-stakes tax controversy matters. As the principal and co-leader of PwC’s Tax Controversy and Regulatory Services practice, a position he began in 2012, Mr. Wilcox advised clients throughout the audit management, appeals and resolution phases of IRS disputes. He also worked closely with corporate and international specialists in cross-border transactions to help clients prepare for potential controversy. From 1997 to 2002, Mr. Wilcox served as co-leader of PwC’s National Mergers and Acquisitions Tax Group, where he focused primarily on the structuring of cross-border corporate transactions. Before assuming his most recent role at PwC, Mr. Wilcox led the tax controversy and transactions practice of another international law firm, where he litigated several high-profile cases.

“Gary’s experience in both the private sector and government bring tremendous value to our marquee tax practice, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the firm,” said Brian Kittle, co-leader of Mayer Brown’s Tax Controversy & Transfer Pricing practice.

Thomas Kittle-Kamp, co-leader of Mayer Brown’s Tax Controversy & Transfer Pricing practice, said, “Gary’s diverse tax controversy and planning experience, with a particular focus on mergers and acquisitions, post-transaction integration structuring, transfer pricing and tax disputes with the IRS, will significantly add to our deep bench of talented tax professionals. Our clients will especially benefit from his experience dealing with and insights into tax policies at both the Department of Treasury and the IRS in addition to his litigation experience, having served as litigation counsel in significant Tax Court cases.”

From 2002 to 2004, Mr. Wilcox served as the IRS Deputy Chief Counsel, where he oversaw a 700-attorney staff in the IRS National Office that provided technical guidance on tax issues to the IRS, the Department of Treasury and the Department of Justice. His office was also responsible for issuing regulations, revenue rulings and procedures, and private letter rulings that provided guidance to taxpayers, tax professionals and IRS agents.

“Mayer Brown’s premier tax controversy and international tax practice, exceptional global reach and collaborative team culture offer an excellent platform for my experience,” said Mr. Wilcox. “I look forward to using both my transactional and controversy background, combined with the firm’s extraordinary tax litigation capabilities, to assist clients in defending and sustaining their tax positions.”

Mr. Wilcox is a frequent lecturer and author on both controversy and corporate tax issues. He earned his LLM in taxation from New York University, his JD, with highest honors, from the University of Oklahoma and his BBA, cum laude, from Texas Tech University.

“Gary’s arrival further solidifies our firm’s strong tax controversy practice in the DC market and beyond,” said Daniel Masur, partner-in-charge of Mayer Brown’s DC office. “His addition signals the continued growth of our Washington office, which has added more than two dozen high-ranking government officials and notable lateral partners in the past few years.”