Congratulations to Alina Stircu 2024 Public Service Stipend Recipient
1 – tell us a little about yourself
My name is Alina Stircu and I am a 1L at Lewis & Clark Law School with an interest in a variety of legal areas, including tax law. I was raised in an immigrant community in Portland and am bilingual. In college, I studied German and Philosophy which allowed me to briefly live across the street from a castle in the Baden-Württemberg region. Prior to law school I worked as an interpreter in legal, medical, and educational settings.
In my free time I am an avid world traveler; I also find pleasure in playing poker and improving my snowboarding and golf skills. Giving back to my community is very important to me and for this reason I also volunteer on a couple of boards related to healthcare and interpreting in the state of Oregon.
2 – plans for the summer
This summer I will be externing at the Oregon Tax Court. As the first in my family to not only graduate from college, but attend law school, I never thought I would be fit for a judicial externship. I waited until the last minute to apply to the Oregon Tax Court because I wasn’t sure I would get it. But I applied and I within a few days I received an offer!
The reason I chose to extern at the Oregon Tax Court is because I understand how intimidating taxes can be for many people, especially immigrants and limited English proficiency speakers, and because one of my favorite parts of law school has been legal writing. There is nothing that compares to the feeling of going through the process of researching, engaging in high-level analysis, revising, and completing a work that culminates in a competent written work. I also enjoy challenging myself on the path of mastery, and hope that this summer will demystify taxes–something I plan to use to help others as an attorney. What I am most looking forward to is the statutory interpretation, going to the state archives and researching amongst the troves of legislative history materials, and actually producing written work.
This summer will not only help me develop as a legal thinker, but will give me insight on the adjudication of tax issues alongside a better understanding of taxes overall. Through my role as Vice President for the Lewis & Clark Law School Tax Law Society, I’ve come to know the Oregon tax law community as one that is full of brilliant thinkers who are passionate about the work they do. This summer will be as rewarding as challenging, and I am very excited to be embraced by this community.
3 – how the stipend will help prepare me achieve my goals
Being a first-generation student is an intimidating experience, but especially when you come from a low-income background. For me, I have always been anxious about school because of the loans and high cost. One of the caveats of law school is that often students engage in unpaid legal work as means of gaining invaluable skills. In my situation, the stipend provides tremendous relief because I know that I will be financially secure while externing. Not only this, but the stipend provides validation of the hard work I’ve done up to this point and connects me with mentors within the Oregon tax law community. I am extremely grateful to have been selected as the recipient of the the Oregon State Bar Tax Section Public Interest Stipend!
Networking Social — Buffalo Gap Saloon April 5, 2024 at 6 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2024 6pm
Buffalo Gap Saloon
6835 S Macadam Ave
Portland, OR 97219
New Tax Lawyers Committee is hosting a social for law students interested in tax law. Food and drink provided. Please RSVP to [email protected] (flyer below)
Flyer- Portland Networking Event 2024
FRIDAY
April 5th
6pm
Buffalo Gap Saloon
Food and Drink Provided
6835 S Macadam Ave Portland, OR 97219
Please RSVP: [email protected]
NTLC Stipend Application Deadline Extended
The OSB Diversity and Inclusion Section has extended the deadline to apply for the Taxation Section Public Interest Stipend until March 15, 2024.
The Tax Public Service stipend is administered by the OSB Diversity and Inclusion program:
https://www.osbar.org/diversity/programs.html
Information about the NTLC stipend is on page 2 of the handbook: https://www.osbar.org/_docs/diversity/SummerStipendProgramsHandbook.pdf Information on how to apply for the stipend is at the bottom of the handbook (no application form like there used to be).
If you have questions, please contact Suraya Barbee [email protected]
Lewis & Clark Tax Law Society – Hon. Henry Breithaupt and Dan Eller w/ Prof Jack Bogdanski (moderating)
The Lewis and Clark Tax Law Society invites you to our Moore v. United States event hosted at Lewis & Clark Law School in Room 2 at 12:00pm on Wednesday February 28th. Hon. Henry Breithaupt and Dan Eller will be discussing the general significance of the Moore case, the current status of the case, and the important constitutional issues the case ultimately raises. Prof. Jack Bogdanski will be moderating. Please RSVP as soon as you can in the link provided below. Lunch will be provided. This event will provide for (1) general CLE credit. Please note that there is no charge for the event, but if you would like to guarantee a parking spot on campus, you will need to buy a parking pass ahead of time. A link is provided in the RSVP on how to purchase a parking pass. There are limited parking passes available- so first come first serve applies.
Note from me: I would highly recommend you buy a parking pass if you plan to attend this event and will be driving to the campus (carpools of course heavily encouraged). The parking situation at Lewis and Clark is abysmal to put it lightly- around the lunch hour there are normally close to zero spots available anywhere near the campus and the surrounding neighborhood discourages people from parking there as well.
RSVP Link here—-à https://forms.gle/MDVDABJbAJXWej419
Any questions: please email Devonne Dotts- [email protected]
2024 Oregon Tax Institute (June 6-7, 2024) SAVE THE DATE
Registration Details Forthcoming
2023 Taxation Section Stipend Recipient
About Me:
I am a second year law student at the University of Oregon Law School primarily studying different areas in business law. I am interested in business law because my parents are small business owners. When we moved to Oregon in 2006, they opened their first restaurant and I grew up in the restaurant. I have always been interested in the legalities of running a business and hope to help other small business owners.
My Stipend work:
Over the summer between my first and second year of law school, I got the opportunity to extern at the Oregon Tax Court. I was able to draft two judicial opinions and write one research memorandum. Additionally, I was able to observe case management conferences, trials, oral arguments, and bailiff for one of the in person trials.
Despite all the interesting work that I was able to participate in, my highlight of the summer was getting to work with the individuals at the Tax Court. They were great mentors and have taught me so much.
How my stipend helped me:
The stipend allowed me to explore opportunities that I would have never considered as a low-income student. When I noticed that an opportunity was going to be unpaid for the summer, I was reassured that I would be able to participate because the stipend covered my basic needs. Additionally, the stipend allowed me to consider unpaid opportunities outside of Eugene, hence why I was able to extern in Salem.
Plans for the Future:
After my summer externship concluded, I was provided the opportunity to interview with Thorp Purdy, a law firm in Springfield, Oregon. I was then offered a position for the upcoming summer as a law clerk with their firm. I hope to be able to continue my work with them after graduating from law school.
Oregon Department of Revenue Rulemaking
The Oregon Department of Revenue is hosting four rulemaking sessions between November 21, 2023 and November 30, 2023. Topics include:
Settlement Offers
Recalculations of Maximum Assessed Value for Partial Assessed Value Exemptions
Pass Through Entity Elective Tax – Extension
Military Pay Subtraction
Certificate of Compliance With Oregon Tax Laws
Tax Compliance Certificates (Child-Caring Agencies)
Interest on Deficiencies and Delinquencies
Interest on Refunds
Additional information can be found at: https://www.oregon.gov/dor/pages/rules-laws.aspx.
Virtual Settlement Week: November 7-9
After a successful third Virtual Settlement Week in July 2023, the Tax Section and the IRS will partner again to host a fourth joint Virtual Settlement Week November 7-9, 2023. Volunteer attorneys will be matched with unrepresented taxpayers to meet and discuss settlement with the IRS Chief Counsel’s Office attorney assigned to the case.
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The deadline to sign up for the third Virtual Settlement Week is October 27, 2023 at 11:59 pm ET.
Please register below or contact Meg Newman, Counsel for the Tax Section, with any questions: [email protected]
Broadbrush 2023
The Section hosts a one-day CLE every other year on a wide array of tax topics for new tax lawyers and non-tax practitioners at the OSB Center. Please encourage the new tax lawyers and non-tax practitioners in your firm to attend this CLE.
2023 Program: Taxes affect everyone—but not everyone knows tax law. Tailored for attorneys without a tax background, this program provides a wealth of information to help spot common tax issues before they become tax problems. A federal tax update will highlight Biden administration tax proposals and tax issues coming out of the pandemic. Learn what every lawyer needs to know about state and local tax. Receive property tax tips, and gain an understanding of the tax aspects of operating agreements. Find out about the pitfalls of employment taxes and explore IRS and Oregon Department of Revenue collections alternatives. Explore IRS and Oregon Department of Revenue collection alternatives, tax considerations during the sale of a business, and the tax consequences of remote work in the COVID-19 era and beyond.
Register Now for the Virtual Fall ABA Tax Meeting
Join the ABA Tax Section at the Fall Virtual Meeting on October 16-20 to learn from the country’s leading tax attorneys and government officials, discussing the latest federal, state, and local tax policies, and more.
Register here: https://web.cvent.com/event/87253cdd-a60d-4117-aba6-eda8a0e6c696/summary