A Conversation with Nina Olson, the National Taxpayer Advocate: Her Unorthodox Path to a Tax Career

Thursday, February 15 at 4:45 p.m.

Villanova Law welcomes Nina Olson, National Taxpayer Advocate, for a conversation about her remarkable career as a private practitioner, business-owner, social entrepreneur and public advocate. The event—sponsored by the Tax Law Society and the Women’s Law Caucus—takes place on Thursday, February 15, in the Blank Rome LLP Classroom (Room 102).

Throughout her career, Olson has advocated for the rights of taxpayers and for greater fairness and less complexity in the tax system. A pioneer in the tax field, she serves as the voice of the taxpayer at the IRS and before Congress. Under her leadership, the Taxpayer Advocate Service helps hundreds of thousands of people every year resolve problems with the IRS and address systemic issues within the IRS. Her Annual Report to Congress identifies the most serious problems facing taxpayers and recommends solutions.

Prior to her appointment as National Taxpayer Advocate in 2001, Olson founded and served as Executive Director of The Community Tax Law Project, the first independent low income taxpayer clinic in the United States.

Olson’s work as the "voice of the taxpayer" at the IRS has won national acclaim. The ABA Section of Taxation honored Olson with its 2017 Distinguished Service Award in recognition of her service to the profession, service to the government, and service to the Section of Taxation. Tax Analysts selected her as one of ten Outstanding Women in Tax for 2016, a recognition reflecting her influence on the work of legislators, tax administrators and tax professionals across the globe. She is a member of the American College of Tax Counsel and delivered the group's prestigious Griswold Lecture in 2010. Money magazine named her one of 12 "Class Acts of 2004," and Accounting Today has named her one of its Top 100 Most Influential People in the accounting profession each year since 2004.