Roberta F. Mann (Widener)
- B.S. 1980, Arizona State
- M.B.A. 1982, Arizona State
- J.D. 1987, Arizona State
- LL.M. (Tax) 1995, Georgetown
Well, I thought this day would never come! Too late to be a new tax professor profile, and not quite mature enough to be a classic. Now I have to find something interesting and original to say about my career path leading to my current position at Widener.
First, I have never been good at career planning. Serendipity is my favored method. It has always worked for me. I went to law school because I was tired of doing monthly production, inventory and sales reports in my first “real” job for a pharmaceutical company. Every month, the same old thing!
Next, I decided to work for the National Office of the IRS Chief Counsel, not because I wanted to be a tax lawyer, but because it was in Washington, D.C. I wanted to move to Washington, D.C., not because it was a great place to start a legal career but because my husband had a job there.
You can’t help learning a lot about tax law at the National Office. I started in the Corporate Tax Division, writing private letter rulings on section 355 business purpose issues. Marty Ginsberg was the counsel for the taxpayer in my first adverse conference. Later, I wrote a couple of regulations under section 382. I enjoyed working for Eric Solomon when he was the Assistant Chief Counsel (Corporate).
Eventually, I came to see the wonder of the tax law as a foreign language, and to rejoice in my growing fluency. I enrolled at Georgetown to broaden my knowledge of tax law. Karl Zeswitz (Corporate and Partnership) and Hal Hicks were among my favorite professors. I met Mona Hymel (University of Arizona) in one of my last classes at Georgetown. She was auditing the class preparing for her new job as a professor. I was about to start my year as IRS visiting professor at UC Davis. I consider Mona to be my first tax colleague. At Davis, Dan Simmons and Bruce Wolk were splendid mentors, encouraging me through our weekly tax faculty meetings at a local Mexican restaurant.
It should come as no surprise to this group that I left my first teaching experience thinking fixedly of a way to get more. I taught at Georgetown as an adjunct for two years, and moved from the IRS to the Joint Committee on Taxation staff. The Joint Committee was a fascinating experience, but I left to join Widener with no regrets. A collegial faculty, friendly students, a location conveniently equidistant to Washington and New York, it’s home.
Somewhere along the way, I lost most of my hobbies and instead took up “causes.” I used to ski and body surf. Now I walk the dog (and the husband) in the Brandywine Creek State Park. I have recently revived an interest in ballet, taking beginning ballet for the umpteenth time, and loving it. Re my “causes.” I am the president of the Board of Trustees of Preservation Delaware, Inc. And, although it doesn’t really feel like a cause, I love the ABA Section of Taxation. I serve as chair of the Individual Income Tax Committee. I was thrilled to be nominated to the American College of Tax Counsel and attended my first meeting last week in San Diego. I write about the impact of tax policy on the environment, and spend entirely too much time worrying about global warming.
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