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Clinic I information
Clinic I class meetings
Clinic II information
Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic 7600 (Clinic I)
Summer Semester 2013, Room 653
Clinic work in Room 150
Office Hours - Monday - Friday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Clinic Phone: 404-413-9230
website: www.gsulitc.org
e-mail: rblasi@gsu.edu
The Clinic website is the electronic textbook for this course. The website contains guidance as to all aspects of your activities in the Clinic, including summaries of procedural and substantive tax law that you will be dealing with in the Clinic.
Attendance is required. Excessive absences may result in exclusion from the class and/or a failing grade, at the discretion of the instructor. Absence from more than four hours of class will be considered excessive. You are expected to work on your cases approximately 10 hours on average each week (7 hours each week in the Clinic office during normal business hours and another 3 hours each week working on your cases either in the Clinic or elsewhere). The 10 hours you work on your cases are in addition to the time spent in class. During the exam period you are expected to engage in the steps needed to transition your cases. During the summer you are allowed and encouraged to spread the 70 hours through the end of July.
Your grade is based on the following criteria: (a) professionalism , which includes your interaction with your clients, Internal Revenue Service personnel, fellow students and staff, appropriate dress when necessary; (b) adherence to Clinic administrative and other procedures (see administrative section on web site) including meeting all time sensitive deadlines; (c) quality of service you render to your clients as determined in part by the evaluations you receive from your clients at the end of the semester; (d) accuracy and thoroughness of written documents and memoranda; (e) progress on cases, especially the submission of at least one memoranda by mid-term and one or more memoranda by the end of the term and finalization of documents for submission to the I.R.S.; (f) success in resolving cases including timely closing cases; (g) class participation and involvement in the Clinic; (h) meeting the minimum required Clinic hours; (i) proper maintenance of your electronic (Amicus) and paper files; and (j) compliance with statutory and administrative deadlines. Missing a statutory deadline may result in a failing grade in this course. See additional information on Clinic website relating to standards for grading.
In order to handle the issues commonly encountered in the Clinic, students must have successfully completed Basic Federal Taxation (Law 7095).
The principal objective of the Tax Clinic is to offer you an environment in which you exercise professional judgment in a supervised setting. You will be confronted with ethical and professionalism issues. You also will develop the essential lawyering skills of interviewing clients, gathering and verifying facts. Most importantly, you will develop your professional writing skills. Although students in the Clinic work on tax matters, the practice skills that are developed are applicable to all areas of the law.
There are several books designed to help understand I.R.S. procedure. Among them are Saltzman, IRS Practice and Procedure, published by Warren, Gorham & Lamont and Effectively Representing Your Client Before the IRS. This is a product of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation Low Income Taxpayers and Pro Bono Committees. There are some copies in the Clinic library.
Monday, May 20
Noon - 5p.m., Library Conference Room
Wednesday, May 22
Room 653
Monday, May 27
No Class - Memorial Day
Wednesday, May 29
Room 653
Monday, June 3
Room 653
Read material on website:
Monday, June 10
Room 653
Read material on website
Monday, June 17
Room 653
Read material on website
Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic 7601
Summer Semester 2013, Faculty Conference Room
Clinic work in Room 150
Office Hours - Monday - Friday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Clinic Office Phone: 404-413-9230
website: www.gsulitc.org
e-mail: rblasi@gsu.edu
The Clinic website is the electronic textbook for this course. The website contains guidance as to all aspects of your activities in the Clinic, including summaries of procedural and substantive tax law that you will deal with.
You are expected to work on your cases approximately 13 hours each week (10 hours in the Clinic office during normal business hours and another 3 hours each week working on your cases either in the Clinic or elsewhere). During the exam period you are expected to engage in the steps needed to transition your cases. During the term and prior to the exam period, it is not expected that you would work 13 hours each week, but on average that is the number of hours you should work. We encourage you to spread those hours out through at least August 5, 2013.
Your grade is based on the following criteria: (a) professionalism , which includes your interaction with your clients, Internal Revenue Service personnel, fellow students and staff, appropriate dress when necessary; (b) adherence to Clinic administrative and other procedures (see administrative section on web site) including meeting all time sensitive deadlines; (c) quality of service you render to your clients as determined in part by the evaluations you receive from your clients at the end of the semester; (d) accuracy and thoroughness of written documents and memoranda; (e) progress on cases, especially the submission of at least one memoranda by mid-term and one or more memoranda by the end of the term and finalization of documents for submission to the I.R.S.; (f) success in resolving cases including timely closing cases; (g) class participation and involvement in the Clinic; (h) meeting the minimum required Clinic hours; (i) proper maintenance of your electronic (Amicus) and paper files; and (j) compliance with statutory and administrative deadlines. Missing a statutory deadline may result in a failing grade in this course. See additional information on Clinic website relating to standards for grading.
In addition, as a Clinic II or GRA student, you will be evaluated on the basis of your mentoring Clinic I students. Mentoring requires that you provide as part of your clinical hours assistance to Clinic I students in working and resolving their cases and learning the administrative procedures of the Clinic. You are also required to attend one class. It is at noon on Monday, May 20. When the Clinic I class begins at 1 P.M. you will be introduced to the new students.
In order to handle the issues commonly encountered in the Clinic, students must have successfully completed Basic Federal Taxation (Law 7095) and Tax Clinic I (7600).
The principal objective of the Tax Clinic is to provide you with an environment in which you learn to exercise professional judgment in a supervised setting. You will be confronted with ethical and professionalism issues. You also will develop the essential lawyering skills of interviewing clients, gathering and verifying facts, preparing documents that will be filed in court or with administrative agencies, etc... Considerable time will be spent on tasks that will improve your writing. Although students in the Clinic work on tax matters, the practice skills that are developed are applicable to all areas of the law.
Among them are Saltzman, IRS Practice and Procedure, published by Warren, Gorham & Lamont and Effectively Representing Your Client Before the IRS. This is a product of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation Low Income Taxpayers and Pro Bono Committees.
