Education
- The University of Alabama School of Law, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, L.L.M. in Taxation, 2006, Graduated with High Honors
- Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama, Juris Doctorate, 1996, Student Materials Editor, The American Journal of Trial Advocacy
- Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, Bachelor of Arts, June 1993, Major: English (Concentration in Technical and Professional Editing), Member, Order of Omega (1992-1993)
Admitted In
- Alabama, 1996
- Mississippi, 1997
- U.S. District Court Middle District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court Southern District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court Northern District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court Middle District of Alabama, 1997
- U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1997
- U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit, 1997
Awards and Recognition
- Best Lawyers® – Tax Law (2023)
Robert is active in the local community, including serving as former board member of the St. Luke’s Episcopal School Board of Trustees and as general counsel of Victory Health Partners, a local nonprofit health care provider serving uninsured adults in Southwest Alabama. He also currently serves on the Board of Directors of Ransom Ministries, which provides job training for low income residents in the Mobile area. Robert currently serves as an Elder for Covenant Presbyterian Church in Mobile, Alabama.
Robert’s practice focuses primarily in the areas of taxation and tax planning, trusts and estates, tax controversies (state and federal), business succession planning, business transactions, mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy, and probate. He joined the firm as a partner in 2011. He is a 1993 graduate of Auburn University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a concentration in Technical and Professional Communication. Robert received his law degree in 1996 from the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University, and thereafter received an L.L.M. in Taxation from the University of Alabama School of Law, graduating with High Honors. He served as a law clerk for Justice Reneau Almon of the Alabama Supreme Court in 1996, and has been in private practice since 1997.
Robert served as Council Director for the Section of Taxation for the American Bar Association (“ABA”), from 2019 to 2022. He is the Past Chair for the Closely Held Business Committee of the ABA Section of Taxation, and has been a speaker or panel participant both locally and nationally on a variety of tax and business planning topics. Robert is the Immediate Past Chair for the Alabama State Bar Association Tax Section. He is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Mobile and is a current member and past Vice Chair of the Probate Section of the Mobile Bar Association. He is also a member of Class 6 of the Alabama State Bar Leadership Forum (2009) and was recognized as a ‘Rising Star’ by Alabama Super Lawyers in 2011.
Robert was inducted into the Fellows of the American Bar Association in 2015. In 2019, he was elected to the American College of Tax Counsel (“ACTC”), which is a national association of tax lawyers who have been recognized by their peers as making an exceptional contribution to the tax profession. He was selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers of America in the area of tax law in 2023.
Robert is licensed to practice in all state and federal courts in Mississippi and Alabama, as well as the Fifth and Eleventh U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal.
Publications
- Planning for the Transition of a Real Estate Business: A Primer on Buy-Sell Agreements, (with Shelby L. Wilson), Tax Management Real Estate Journal, V. 31, 8, p. 233 (Bloomberg BNA, August 5, 2015).
- Business Succession Planning: Do You Know Who is Next in Line?, The Business View, Mobile Chamber of Commerce, March, 2010.
- Deposition Preparation and Defense for the Young Lawyer (With Kyle A. Lansberry), For the Defense, Defense Research Institute, Volume 42, No.1, January, 2000; republished in Michigan Lawyers Weekly, Vol. 14, Nos. 42 and 43, August 21, 28, 2000, and 24 American Journal of Trial Advocacy, Fall, 2000.
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue Services v. Schleir: Taxability of ADEA Damage Awards, 19 Am. J. Trial Advoc. 704, 1996
Speeches, Presentations and Seminars
- Speaker, Federal Case Law and Regulatory Developments Affecting State and Local Taxes, Alabama State Bar Tax Section Meeting, Montgomery, Alabama, August 16, 2023.
- Speaker, Tax and Non-Tax Pitfalls of Liquidating a Business, Presented at 76th Annual Federal Tax Clinic, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, November 16, 2022, and the IRS Representation Conference, New Haven, Connecticut, November 18, 2022.
- Speaker, Hot Topics for Closely Held Businesses, ABA Tax Section May Meeting, Washington, D.C., May 14, 2022.
- Speaker, Update on 2021 Tax Proposals and Tax Planning, Gulf Coast Estate Planning Conference, Mobile, Alabama, September 21, 2021.
- Speaker, Federal Case Law and Regulatory Developments Affecting State and Local Taxes, Alabama State Bar Tax Section, Annual Meeting Webinar, December 1, 2020.
- Speaker, Rental Real Estate Safe Harbor Compliance for Section 199A, National Business Institute, April 23, 2020.
- Speaker, Breaking Up is Hard to Do: Tax Implications of Unwinding Business Affairs Among Multiple Economic Owners, ABA Tax Section 2020 Mid-Year Meeting, Boca Raton, Florida, January 31, 2020.
- Speaker, Buy-Sell Agreements for Closely Held Businesses, ABA Tax Section Midyear Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, January 18, 2019.
- Speaker, Tax Planning for Law Firms Under the 2017 Tax Act Revisited: The Effects of the Proposed Regulations, Webinar for ABA Tax Section, Wednesday, September 26, 2018.
- Speaker, Tax Planning for Law Firms Under the 2017 Tax Act, Webinar for ABA Tax Section, Wednesday May 30, 2018.
- Speaker, Minimizing Tax Burdens of Closely Held Business Owners in Light of New Section 199A, ABA Tax Section May Meeting, Washington, D.C., May 11, 2018.
- Speaker, Probate Boot Camp: Probating Estates with Business Interests, Spouses Rights and Issues in Probate Administration, National Business Institute Seminar, Mobile, Alabama, December 20 and 21, 2017.
- Speaker, Options for Cross Purchase and Redemption Structures, ABA Tax Section 2017 Joint Fall Meeting, Austin, Texas, September 15, 2017.
- Speaker, Buy-Sell Agreements for Closely Held Businesses, ABA Tax Section 2017 Mid-Year Meeting, January 20, 2017.
- Speaker, The Purchase and Sale of a Professional Practice: Tax and Practical Considerations, ABA Tax Section 2016 Joint Fall Meeting, Boston, Massachusetts, September 30, 2016.
- Speaker, Income Tax Traps in Related Party Transactions, and Section 409A Compliance for Severance Agreements and Other Defunded Camp Plans, Armbrecht Jackson 2015 CPA Continuing Education Seminar, September 24, 2015.
- Speaker, Breaking Up is Hard To Do: Tax and Practical Implications of Unwinding Business Affairs Among Multiple Partners, ABA Tax Section 2015 Joint Fall Meeting, Chicago, IL, September, 18, 2015.
- Speaker, Buy-Sell Agreements for Closely Held Businesses, ABA Tax Section May Meeting, Washington, D.C., May 8, 2015.
- Speaker, Advising Fiduciaries of Trusts and Estates Holding Business Interests: Balancing Tax Objectives with State Law Duties, Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, FL, January 12-16, 2015.
- Speaker, Estate Planning for Timberland Owners, Longleaf Alliance Seminar, Mobile, AL, October 22, 2014.
- Speaker, Tax Traps Involved in Related Party Transactions with Family or Closely Held Businesses, ABA Tax Section 2014 Joint Fall Meeting, Denver, CO, September 19, 2014.
- Speaker, Advising the Fiduciaries of Trusts Holding Business Interests, ABA Tax Section 2013 Joint Fall Meeting, San Francisco, CA, September 20, 2013.
- Speaker, Tales from the Crypt: Dealing with a Decedent’s Tax Fraud, ABA Tax Section 2013 Midyear Meeting, January 25, 2013.
- Speaker, Alabama Update: Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law, National Business Institute, October 23, 2012.
- Speaker, Issues in Dividing Up and Transferring Property Out of Professional Associations and Partnerships, ABA Tax Section 2012 Joint Fall Meeting, September 14, 2012.
- Speaker, Structuring Buyouts for Retiring Professionals, ABA Tax Section 2012 Joint Fall Meeting, September 14, 2012.
- Moderator, Non-Tax Issues in Business Succession Planning, ABA Tax Section 2011 Fall Meeting, October 21, 2011.
- Speaker/Moderator, Practical, Psychological and Ethical Issues in Representing the Family Business, ABA Tax Section 2011 Midyear Meeting, January 21, 2011.
- Speaker, Landlord-Tenant Law in Alabama, Sterling Education Services, July 8, 2008.
- Speaker, Limited Liability Companies-Trends and Developments, National Business Institute, December 11, 2007.
- Speaker, Landlord-Tenant Law: The Effect of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 2005 on Landlords & Tenants, National Business Institute, January 23, 2007.
- Speaker, Entity Formalities Governance and Dissolution, ABA Tax Section 2007 Midyear Meeting, January 18, 2007.
- Speaker, Paralegal Training Seminar, Sterling Education Services, 2004.
- Speaker, Drafting and Enforcing Commercial Leases, Sterling Education Services, November 27, 2001.
Professional Affiliations
- American Bar Association, Taxation and Real Property/Probate Sections, Member
- The Fellows of the American Bar Association, 2015 – Present, Member
- Closely Held Businesses Committee, ABA Tax Section, 2005 – Present, Past Chair
- Council Director, ABA Tax Section (2019)
- Fellow, American College of Tax Counsel (2019)
- Alabama Bar Association, Member, 1996 – Present, Vice Chair of Tax Section (2019)
- Mobile Bar Association, Member, Vice Chair of the Probate Section, Assistant Treasurer (2019)
- Estate Planning Council of Mobile, Inc., 2009 – Present, Member
- Mississippi Bar Association, Member