University of London, King’s College, London, England in 1983; he earned his JD at the University of Virginia School of Law, Charlottesville, VA in 1988; and he earned his LLM in Taxation at Georgetown University Law Center, Washington DC in 1997.

KJ- Your tax career is interesting because you have a substantial amount of experience working in the United Kingdom and the United States. Please tell me how this happened.

TD- When I finished law school I started with Fulbright & Jaworski LLP's Washington DC office because I was interested in its international focus. Since the Seventies, Fulbright had been advising on reinvesting petrodollars, which had accumulated in the Middle East, back in the United States. My goal was to get some good international corporate experience in Washington, where we supported the London and other foreign offices (Hong Kong, Germany, and Switzerland at that time).


KJ- What did you learn from your initial experience in this law firm?

TD- I was in a small group which worked closely with the partner who led the international corporate practice at Fulbright, Steven Pfeiffer. What I really learnt from Steve was the importance of taking care with clients. Steve gave a great deal of thought on how to respond to clients, in light of their particular agendas. He was also very good at keeping his ear to the ground and attracting new clients. There was a story about Steve, who was a Director of the most prestigious bank in Washington and consequently would spend a fair amount of time waiting outside the Chairman's office; instead of reading the paper, Steve got to know the Chairman's secretary. As it happened, the secretary was a prominent member of a local church that was forced to sell its downtown site to a government agency. The secretary asked Steve to help her church fight the eminent domain action and then to reinvest the award to build a new church. The firm made more money in terms of real estate fees for a couple of years from this project than it received from the bank! Here was a busy senior partner who paid attention to someone whom he could not expect to provide him with a project. But it turns out that she had one to give, and gave it to the lawyer who most impressed her (she had met all of the prominent Washington lawyers as part of her job). So by taking care in all your relationships, you will attract work from the most unexpected sources. Steve is now the Chairman of Fulbright's Executive Committee.


KJ- You started your career in corporate law for three years prior to moving into tax. What prompted you to move into a tax career?

TD- I was interested in the technical challenge that tax offered. In addition, in 1991 corporate work slowed, and I noticed that we continued to be busy in the tax practice; so I made the shift to tax at that time.

KJ- In 1999, you moved from an internationally recognized law firm in the United States to an internationally recognized Big Four firm in London, England. What did you learn from this experience?

TD- I would encourage any tax specialist to try both the law firm and public accounting firm experiences. While there is more overlap than one might think between the two professional business environments, in a public accounting firm you are always aware that your advice eventually is presented to the IRS in the form of a number or statement on a tax return. This appreciation of the end result of your input will make you
a better advisor.


KJ- Your current role as Director on the KPMG US Tax Desk in London, England is interesting. Please explain how you work out of London and on a US tax desk.

TD- Accounting and law firms provide US tax services in London in different ways. Some groups see their role simply as a means of referring work back to the parent or affiliated US firm, or as focusing on compliance. In contrast, KPMG has developed a stand-alone tax consulting practice in London which serves predominantly European clients, although we refer specific projects back to our US firm when it makes sense (for example, earnings & profits studies). This puts a premium on flexibility and adaptability, and has allowed me to expand my client base from US and European corporations to include private investment funds, pension funds, charities, universities, and government-owned or -sponsored entities. I believe that a willingness to diversify one's skills is absolutely critical in the current economic environment, and I encourage my junior colleagues to push themselves out of their comfort zones. As the supply of credit has slowed, it is surely helpful if you have one or two clients who do not rely on leverage (whether they be pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, or charities). I would encourage any tax advisor to take an opportunity to rotate through a foreign office as this will make him or her more culturally aware. Your foreign clients will often lack patience with our complicated US tax system, and you will need to express yourself clearly and simply, without threatening the integrity of your advice. I have a bit of a head start in London as I was educated through college
there.


KJ- How would you compare the US tax system to that of the UK?

TD- The UK has not codified its tax laws, so there are annual tax bills and periodic revisions to specific areas of tax (e.g., capital gains or more recently the treatment of nonresident individuals); in other words, it is like our system before the 1954 codification. Also, non-statutory, interpretative provisions are promulgated in a variety of ways, not always as regulations. Finally, UK tax law is subject to and modified by European Community case law and legislation. The UK system appears to me much less transparent than ours; quite a bit of the skill seems to lie in knowing where to look.


KJ- What advice would you give to anyone marketing their tax consulting services in a public accounting firm or a law firm?


TD- Of course we need to raise our profiles through writing or speaking, but I think it is worth emphasizing some fundamentals. In an economic downturn, we will probably need to develop new skills and clients; but in doing so, do not neglect your historic client relationships (whether they are external or internal). Show that you are thinking of them by sending them article clippings or law updates. Your old clients may not be in a position to give you a project for several years, but I can assure you that when the time comes they will be keenly aware of which of their advisors have been "fair weather friends." Second, the tendency for "virtual" deals where the advisors and clients rarely or never meet face-to-face will increase in this cost-sensitive environment, which means that you must strive even harder to spend time with clients in order to get to know them better. Third, take pains with your team, whether it includes fellow professionals or simply access to a secretary and filing clerk. If they feel enthusiastic about your practice, they will free you up to do better with your clients, and support you in building relationships. The longer I practice, the more strongly I feel that our business is all about relationships and that those who succeed in it understand that simple truth. And perhaps we tax professionals need reminding of this, because the technical demands of our job sometimes distract us from its relationship aspects. I wish that my old law school had offered courses on business relationships and team leadership; instead, we were given the impression that the practice of law was a matter solely of technical mastery, which is incorrect in my view.


KJ- Thank you for the wonderful advice to our readers and going forward into the New Year. There are silver linings and bright spots out there if people will look closely around them.

TD- I agree, and don't neglect the Chairman's secretary! Thank you, Kitty.

Kathleen Jennings (KJ)
Editor, The Tax Intelligence Report
Kathleen@etsearch.com

Thomas S. Dick (TD)
Director U.S. Tax Desk
KPMG LLP, London, England

If you would like to send an email to Thomas Dick, please contact Kathleen Jennings at Kathleen@etsearch.com.