Overview
(October 4, 2021, Washington, DC) — Steptoe & Johnson LLP is pleased to announce the further expansion of its Tax Litigation & Controversy practice with the arrival of Steve Dixon as partner. Dixon, who will reside in the firm’s Washington, DC office, joins a practice that has grown since June with the arrivals of partner Larry Hill and of counsel Richard Nessler in New York.
Dixon has been litigating federal tax cases for corporate and individual taxpayers for more than 17 years. He has represented Fortune 500 taxpayers in high-profile trials before the Tax Court (including a multi-billion-dollar transfer-pricing case in that venue), the Court of Federal Claims, and in federal district court.
Dixon represents taxpayers across a broad range of industries, including energy, consumer goods, technology, defense, real estate development, healthcare, insurance, transportation and banking/financial firms. The tax subject matters are equally broad, and have included transfer pricing, intangible valuation, accounting methods, debt-equity classification, insurance, and excise tax disputes, among others.
Steptoe Chair Phil West, who also co-chairs the Tax Group, commented: "Steve is an extremely able, accomplished, and energetic tax controversy and trial lawyer. He is another great addition to our storied tax controversy and litigation practice, which recently welcomed Larry Hill and Richard Nessler, and includes Matt Frank, Greg Kidder, Amanda Varma, Aaron Nocjar, and other talented lawyers. As we see tax enforcement increase, our corporate and high-net-worth clients will benefit from the world-class team we have in place."
Larry Hill, who co-heads the firm’s tax controversy practice added: "We are very excited to have Steve join our premier tax controversy team. His trial skills, depth of experience, drive and enthusiasm are rare commodities and add strength to strength."
Steptoe's tax practice has long been known as one of the top resources for clients facing IRS audits, appeals, and tax litigation. The firm has been the professional home for generations of renowned tax controversy lawyers, including Jim Holden, Matt Zinn, Art Bailey, and Mark Silverman, and has more recently attracted other outstanding practitioners with tax controversy practices. In addition to the lawyers mentioned above, they include Bob Rizzi, Eric Solomon, and Lisa Zarlenga, and they are supported by a top-tier group of associates.
Dixon commented: "Steptoe has a preeminent tax practice and a clear vision for the future as evidenced by its significant investments in the practice over the past year. I am honored to join the practice and eager to work with the tax controversy team here to help clients navigate their most challenging and complex domestic and international tax controversy matters."
Steptoe's Tax Group advises global businesses and high-net-worth individuals across all industries on their most important and complex international and domestic tax matters. The group includes former senior government officials from Treasury, the IRS, the Justice Department, and congressional tax-writing committees. Steptoe's highly regarded Tax Group has earned top rankings and recommendations from the legal directories Chambers USA and The Legal 500, among other publications.
Dixon, who has been recognized for his tax controversy work by both the International Tax Review and The Legal 500 US, received his law degree from Harvard Law School. He holds a masters in philosophy from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and received his bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Toledo.
About Steptoe
In more than 100 years of practice, Steptoe has earned an international reputation for vigorous representation of clients before governmental agencies, successful advocacy in litigation and arbitration, and creative and practical advice in structuring business transactions. Steptoe has more than 500 lawyers and other professional staff across offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.