Geoffrey Collins represents clients in all phases of tax controversy, both in court and before the Internal Revenue Service. His experience includes major trials and Appellate cases as well as large corporate tax matters before IRS Exam and IRS Appeals. In addition, his experience includes the successful use of alternative-dispute-resolution initiatives such as the Pre-Filing Agreement program. He has represented clients in controversies involving advance pricing agreements, transfer pricing, timing of pension contribution deductions, section 199 domestic production activity deductions, carrybacks of Net Operating Losses and other tax attributes, debt-equity characterization of intercompany advances, deductibility of settlement payments under the False Claims Act, summons enforcement, and the application of economic substance, sham-transaction, and similar substance-over-form doctrines.

Frank Agostino, Esq., Agostino & Associates PC, Hackensack, NJ, is the founder and president of Agostino & Associates, P.C. Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Agostino was an attorney with the Internal Revenue Service’s District Counsel in Springfield, Illinois and Newark, New Jersey. He also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney, where he prosecuted primarily criminal tax cases. As an adjunct professor, Mr. Agostino taught tax controversy at Rutgers School of Law and served as the co-director of the Rutgers Federal Tax Law Clinic. Mr. Agostino is a frequent speaker and author on tax controversy and litigation matters. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Journal of Tax Practice and Procedure. Mr. Agostino is actively involved with the American Bar Association and the New York County Lawyers’ Association. Mr. Agostino is also the President of the Taxpayers Assistance Corp., which provides tax and legal advice to low income taxpayers in the NY/NJ area

Ulises Ruiz is the Principal-In-Charge for the International Tax Department of Prager Metis, a member of Prager Metis International Group. He has more than 25 years of experience in the accounting industry and has earned his Juris Doctorate and LLM degree. Mr. Ruiz has over twenty years of experience specifically in international tax niche with a specialization in tax advisory, tax planning, structuring and compliance. He represents high-net-worth clients, manufacturing and distribution companies, public companies, real estate clients, and technology-based companies. His area of expertise lies in helping companies and individuals with cross-border tax issues alongside providing advisory functions to help optimize tax profile of international business. Mr. Ruiz is a noted industry expert and has been a prolific speaker and author on topics pertaining to international taxation. He has participated by providing his valuable insights in articles like Bloomberg’s BNA tax management portfolios, foreign income-based transfer pricing on rules and practice in selected countries and more.

Patrick McCormick is an attorney with over a dozen years of experience, focusing his practice specifically on international taxation. Mr. McCormick represents both business and individual clients on all aspects of United States international tax rules, both from an income tax and estate/gift tax perspective. Having previously served as a partner at a large law firm, a midsized accounting firm, and a boutique tax law firm, Patrick’s client exposures have covered every conceivable area of American-side international tax matters. Patrick has also represented every type of taxpayer – from multibillion-dollar business enterprises and ultra-high net worth individuals to startups and individuals with complex questions but limited budgets. Mr. McCormick has worked with clients located in over 90 countries on American tax considerations of multinational activities, cultivating specialized knowledge in every area of United States international tax rules. His explicit practice focus has facilitated an unparalleled expertise in the field; Patrick is trusted by clients and advisors around the world to obtain optimal results on international tax matters. Mr. McCormick is a primary and prolific authority on tax matters. He has spoken on all aspects of international tax to hundreds of thousands of attendees around the globe, functioning as the primary international tax resource for national organizations including CPAacademy.org, Strafford, Lawline, and Leimberg Information Services. Patrick has presented for the American Bar Association, the American Immigration Law Association, and state and local bar associations around the United States. He is a regular contributor to America’s premier tax law publications, including Tax Notes, Journal of Taxation, Tax Notes International, Law360, and Practical Tax Lawyer. Mr. McCormick counsels a range of clients from individuals to businesses with their international tax and legal needs. When counseling individual clients, Mr. McCormick assists with residency planning, asset ownership structuring, and minimization of global income tax bills for foreign-sourced income items. His business client representation includes an extensive scope of multinational transactions, including classification of foreign entities, options for structuring multinational transactions, and minimization of American anti-deferral tax mechanisms. Mr. McCormick’s specific and comprehensive practice allows him to assist clients when international factors are most relevant. Mr. McCormick published his first treatise on international tax matters, Allocation and Apportionment Rules Under Secs. 861-865, for Thomson Reuters’ Catalyst platform, in October 2021. In late 2021, he also released a 15-hour digital course entirely dedicated to nonresident taxation, United States Tax Considerations for Nonresident Taxpayers. Mr. McCormick has been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star from 2016-2022.

Phil is an international tax lawyer. After a tour through the trust department of a large bank, he started his own tax law firm, dedicated exclusively to international tax problems--preventing them when possible, and cleaning them up if it's too late. Phil lives and works in Pasadena, California but gets on a plane as often as he can, usually to the Middle East and Asia. He has done the usual Bar Association stuff, including serving as a former Vice Chair of the California Bar's Tax Section. He is active in the California Society of CPAs as a speaker and conference organizer and chairman. Phil is the Past Chair of the International Tax Committee of the State Bar of California’s Tax Section. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the State Bar of California’s Tax Section for 2004-2007. (The Tax Section is the only statewide association of tax lawyers in California, with more than 3,000 members). Phil was on the organizing committee of the California Society of CPA’s premiere annual conference–the two day Tax Update and Planning Conference. He is also on the organizing committee for the California Society of CPA’s annual International Tax Conference. Phil has been a frequent speaker at both Conferences and many other events. He represented the California Bar Association before the IRS in May 2012 and testified on the topic of the taxation of Canadian RRSPs and foreign pensions. As the issue of expatriation has significantly increased, due in large part to the spotlight on FBAR & FATCA reporting, Phil has been quoted a number of times in the Wall Street Journal on this topic.

Philip T. Pasmanik, CPA, MST is a Partner in the Commercial Services tax practice of Hertz Herson CPA LLP. He has over 25 years of Big 4, national, regional, and mid-size firm experience servicing both public and closely held clients in the manufacturing, distribution, financial services and other service industries. He has extensive experience in assisting multi-national clients with International and domestic tax planning and compliance. He is a frequent contributor of articles to the Tax Advisor, the Journal of Accountancy, and has spoken at prior NYSCPA International Tax conferences and conduced educational webinars for the AICPA on International tax matters and instructed classes on international tax matters for FAE. He is the Chair of the AICPA International Tax Resource Panel and a member of the NYSSCPA International Tax Committee. He is a member of the AICPA, NYSSCA and NJSCPA.

Ms. Gillespie’s law practice focuses on international tax matters and income and estate tax planning for high net worth, non-resident individuals, non-U.S. individuals working in the U.S. and U.S. citizens working abroad. She has considerable experience representing clients making voluntary disclosures to the IRS. Before establishing her legal practice, she worked for Arthur Andersen, the Goldman Sachs Family Office and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom. She is Chair of the Suffolk County Bar Association Animal Law Committee; she is past Chair of the New York State Society of CPA’s Digital Asset Committee as well as their International Taxation Committee. She is a member of the AICPA, the American Bar Association, and the New York State, New York City and Suffolk County Bar Associations. She is admitted to practice in New York and the Law Society of England and Wales. She is a CPA; she has received her Masters of Science degree in Taxation and her Juris Doctor and is also a certified public accountant. Ms. Gillespie has served on the NYSSCPA’s Tax Division Oversight Committee and its Virtual Currency Task Force. She is a TEP (Trust and Estate Practitioner) under the auspices of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She served as an adjunct Professor at Touro Law School. Ms. Gillespie lectures frequently and has authored a number of articles on topics including but not limited to, international taxation, virtual currency and digital assets. She is the author of the “Foreign Bank Account Reporting Compliance Guide (with FATCA coverage)” published by CCH.

Cristina (Cris) Wolff has more than 30 years of professional experience in the areas of tax and accounting. Cris is a former EisnerAmper LLP International Tax Partner, and since 2020 Cris has her own private practice Cristina N. Wolff, CPA, LLC. She specializes in U.S. and International tax consulting and compliance for U.S. and foreign high net worth individuals, families and closely held entities. Cris advises U.S. and foreign clients working and investing in the U.S. She has significant experience in the area of taxation for inpats and Expats including U.S. residents and nonresidents living and working in the U.S. and U.S. citizens living and working abroad. Cris also advises foreign clients on issues concerning doing business in the U.S. and U.S. citizens or legal residents with offshore assets. Cris began her studies in accounting at Universidad de Ciencias Economicas de Belgrano in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She completed her studies in New York and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree from City University of New York. Cris is active in various professional organizations, and she is past Chair of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants Tax Oversight Committee and the International Tax Committee. She’s a member of STEP, the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. Cris received the 2019 Crain’s New York Business Notable Women in Accounting award.