Cross-Fertilizing the Tax Classroom

Taxation, embedded in both the legal and accounting professions, is taught in law schools and business schools. Courses in the former develop the skills of future attorneys, some of whom will specialize in taxation. Courses in the latter develop the skills of future Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), many of whom will specialize in taxation. Tax lawyers, among other activities, engage in tax structuring, document drafting, and litigation. CPAs who specialize in tax, among other activities, engage in tax compliance. Beyond those distinctions, the skills required of both professionals often overlap. Both lawyers and CPAs, for example, do tax research, tax planning, and represent clients on audits. And both professionals often work together to serve mutual clients. Despite the blending of the two professions in tax practice, law school tax courses and business school tax courses often differ from one another in teaching methods and content. The differences are understandable because each school is teaching tax within, and in accord with, a broader professional curriculum. And that curriculum looks much different in legal education than in accounting education.