John T. Hildy

“…experienced, practical and a strong business partner.”

Tax Litigation: John is an experienced advocate in federal tax disputes faced by multi-national corporations. He has represented clients in some of the most complex tax litigation in the country. For example, he recently led our team during a three-week trial in the US Tax Court on behalf of our client, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, in a case involving tax implications of a guest loyalty program. Also, he led our team in representing Boston Scientific Corporation in litigating over $4 billion of transfer pricing and related adjustments before the Tax Court. John frequently advises clients in addressing the types of evidentiary privileges most commonly encountered by the Tax Department (e.g., attorney-client, tax advisor, work product privileges) and represents taxpayers in associated administrative summons enforcement matters where necessary.

IRS Administrative Proceedings: The amounts at stake in federal tax disputes can often be staggering. So big, in fact, that it often seems cases become “too big to settle,” as the positions of the tax authorities and taxpayers are separated by hundreds of millions, and even billions, of dollars. John is adept at bridging this gap, having participated in multiple settlements of multiple disputes in which the dollars at stake reached into ten digits. John’s practice emphasizes issue resolution at the earliest stage feasible, not just on the steps of the courthouse. To that end, John has experience using a broad set of alternative dispute resolution tools, including Tax Court-supervised mediation, Traditional Appeals and Appeals review of docketed issues, Early referral to Appeals, Fast Track and Appeals Mediation, Pre-filing Agreements (PFAs), and Competent Authority and Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs).

International Tax and Transfer Pricing: The mainstay of John’s controversy practice relates to disputes surrounding international tax matters, especially transfer pricing. He frequently counsels corporate taxpayers on how to navigate transfer pricing audits using the IRS’s transfer pricing “roadmap.” As a complement to John’s controversy practice, he also regularly advises clients on how to structure and defend transactions with significant transfer pricing implications, including cross-border transfer pricing of tangible and intangible property, shared headquarter services, and cost sharing arrangements. He has advised both US taxpayers with respect to international tax implications of off-shore operations, as well as non-US taxpayers with respect to the implications of their US activities. John is co-editor of Best Methods, Mayer Brown’s blog dedicated to the latest transfer pricing guidance, developments and cases.

John has been recognized by Chambers USA (Tax Controversy - Illinois) since 2016 and in the International Tax Review’s Tax Controversy Leaders guide since 2011. In addition, he is recognized as a “leading lawyer” by Legal 500. Chambers has described John as “a very impressive lawyer” and an “experienced, practical and a strong business partner.”