Crowell & Moring Has Expanded Its Tax Group With Addition Of State And Local Tax Team

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Aug 22, 2012, 10:00 ET

WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Crowell & Moring LLP has expanded its Tax Group with the addition of two nationally recognized partners in the firm's Washington, D.C. office. Donald M. Griswold and Walter Nagel are moving their practices from Reed Smith LLP to Crowell & Moring, where they will provide counseling to Fortune 500 clients on state and local tax (SALT) matters, including mergers and acquisitions, state tax planning, and audit defense and litigation. Griswold and Nagel will also be joined by an associate.

Griswold and Nagel, both on the adjunct faculty of Georgetown University Law Center, arrive on the heels of prominent tax controversy and litigation partners, David B. Blair and David J. Fischer who joined the firm last month. The new additions are part of Crowell & Moring's ongoing and strategic expansion of the firm's full service national Tax Group.

"The addition of Don and Walt to our Tax Group extends the firm's ability to serve our clients on the full range of tax matters they face. As tax law has become increasingly complex, their experience handling multistate tax matters for some of the world's largest corporations is a tremendous asset for clients," said Harold J. Heltzer, chair of Crowell & Moring's Tax Group.

Griswold previously served as KPMG's national partner-in-charge of State Tax Technical Services and as a partner in other nationally known law firms. In his nearly 30 year career in multistate tax law, he has focused on consulting and planning, audit litigation and settlement, and proactive recovery of tax refunds. Representing clients in nearly all 50 states, he has successfully litigated and settled difficult tax controversies for his Fortune 500 clients. Some of his greatest successes for clients have come in the form of confidentially negotiated settlements. Griswold also has a particular focus on proactive, forward-looking state tax planning and constitutional tax issue work for clients. Griswold holds a J.D. from Boston University School of Law, and he earned a B.A., with honors, from the University of Chicago.

"Our clients are increasingly demanding integrated tax services on the state, federal, and international levels, and we are excited about Crowell & Moring's offerings on all these fronts. We look forward to expanding the firm's tax offerings for our clients and to enhancing relationships with Crowell & Moring's impressive roster of institutional clients," said Griswold.

With decades of in-house counsel and industry experience, Nagel focuses his practice on handling tax planning, tax policy, and controversies for clients in all 50 states. He has extensive experience in the taxation of major corporations, with a particular focus on technology and electronic commerce matters. Nagel also has experience handling federal securities law matters dealing with some of the largest mutual funds in the country. He previously served as vice president & general tax counsel for a large telecommunications company and president of an electronic commerce company. Nagel also served as counsel to one of the commissioners of the U.S. Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce. He is a past chair of the American Bar Association's Committee on State and Local Taxes and is the current chairman of The Hispanic College Fund. Nagel holds a J.D. from Rutgers School of Law–Newark, an LL.M. in Taxation from Georgetown University Law Center, and a B.A. and M.B.A. from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

"I have worked across the table from and respected the practice of Hal Heltzer and his group for over two decades and have seen first-hand that Crowell & Moring's client work is driven by a commitment to excellence and innovation. I look forward to being part of a firm so highly regarded for a spirit of partnership and commitment to client service," said Nagel.

Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with approximately 500 lawyers representing clients in litigation and arbitration, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm is internationally recognized for its representation of Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes litigation, as well as its ongoing commitment to pro bono service and diversity. The firm has offices in Washington, DC, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County, Anchorage, London, and Brussels. Visit Crowell & Moring online at http://www.crowell.com.

SOURCE Crowell & Moring LLP