My route towards becoming a tax lawyer was circuitous, but the common thread was a love for learning and communicating about technical subjects.
I was born and raised in Iowa, which was a wonderful place to grow up in. (Humidity and allergies aside!) I stayed local for college, planning to major in mathematics. But after taking an early humanities class and discovering how much I loved learning about history’s great writers and thinkers, I quickly committed to the study of philosophy. I became particularly interested in areas at the intersection of philosophy and more technical fields, such as symbolic logic, philosophy of science, and the foundations of mathematics.
Graduate school provided an opportunity to study those topics in greater detail. I enrolled in a PhD program in Orange County, California, and have remained in California for the past twenty years. Along the way to finishing the degree I was able to spend a year studying abroad in Europe and learn enough German to be able to read works of philosophy originally written in that language. (Sadly, my foreign language skills have since diminished – use it or lose it, as they say.) Teaching logic, game theory, and other technical subjects was also enjoyable and helped develop my passion for communicating about complicated subjects in a way that is understandable to anyone.
One day a friend of mine introduced me to the tax law and the rest is history. The puzzle solving nature of transactional tax planning offered an interesting practical application of my technical skills. I studied at Stanford Law School and signed up for every tax and accounting class available. A highlight of my time was a full-time externship with the IRS, where I advised on transfer pricing matters.
For nearly ten years I practiced in the transactional tax group of Latham & Watkins in Los Angeles. In that role I developed experience advising on a wide range of matters, including private equity deals, partnership formations, strategic acquisitions and investments, financings, and real estate and REIT matters.
I’m pleased to have the opportunity to now bring those skills and experience to the environment of a boutique tax firm and a new set of clients at Baker Tax Law. My passion for this work still ties back to my earliest interests, whether that involves the creative puzzle solving involved in creating structures that address particular tax needs, the precise writing and critical thinking involved in negotiating and drafting transaction documents, or the opportunity to engage with clients to make even the most technical aspects of the tax law accessible. Baker has a proven track records of providing effective tax advice to its clients, and I’m delighted to join the team.
After an extended stay on the West Coast, I’m also looking forward to a return to the Midwest. My wife and I will soon be making a move to Michigan, where we both have family. While we’ll miss the California weather, we’re excited to be closer to our relatives and return to the Midwest lifestyle. In my free time I’ll be found exploring local nature trails with our mini poodle, or with my head buried in a book about history or a work of literary fiction.
Brian Rogers is the co-chair of the Tax practice group at Baker Tax Law. For additional information, please contact brian@mbakertaxlaw.com.