David A. Brennen (Mercer)
-
B.B.A. 1988, Florida Atlantic
-
J.D. 1991, Florida
-
LL.M. (Taxation) 1994, Florida
I am the Ellison C. Palmer Professor of Tax Law at Mercer. Prior to joining the Mercer faculty in 2001, I taught at Richmond and Syracuse.
I knew when I was a second year law student at Florida that I wanted to teach law, and by my third year I knew I wanted to specialize in teaching tax law.
I am a first generation college student and the only person in my immediate and extended family (except for my wife) to attend law school. My approach to law, both in terms of law practice and law teaching, is heavily informed by my personal background. Obtaining a law school education is a transformative event in one’s life. The law opens your mind to the many possibilities of social and legal structure. This can be very frustrating in law practice – for a client seldom wants to fund social or legal re-structuring when these acts do not coincide with “winning the case.” Thus, being a law professor – at least for me – is an opportunity to look critically at law and how law interacts with people to achieve a more just society, especially for those who are most often overlooked or forgotten.
I chose to concentrate on tax law because of its pervasiveness in all of our lives – whether rich or poor, black or white, male or female. Given that tax law affects us all, it is one area of law in which even the slightest injustice can have a huge impact. Most recently, I have been researching ways in which tax law can be explored, not solely as a study of economic impact, but also as a study of social impact.
On the personal side, I have three boys – the oldest began Navy service on March 1, 2005, and the youngest will begin Kindergarten later this year. My hobbies are wood-working, exercise and all things outdoors. My wife, who tolerates most of my whims, is also an attorney.
For professional background, accomplishments, and publications please see my website.
Each Saturday, TaxProf Blog shines the spotlight on one of the 700+ tax professors in America’s law schools. We hope to help bring the many individual stories of scholarly achievements, teaching innovations, public service, and career moves within the tax professorate to the attention of the broader tax community. Please email me suggestions for future Tax Prof Profiles. For prior Tax Prof Profiles, see here.
