Caroline D. Ciraolo has been nominated as the initial Vice Chair of Membership, Diversity, and Inclusion. Her term will begin at the conclusion of the ABA Annual Meeting in August, along with the terms of other Section officers, as announced earlier this year.
The Section created this new Vice Chair position to lead efforts to actively support the growth of Section membership, ensure the Section meets member needs, broaden Section diversity, and include diverse persons in all Section activities. The Nominating Committee issued a call for nominations for this new position in February and selected Ciraolo from several nominations.
“The creation of the new Vice Chair position reflects the importance we are placing on membership and diversity,” noted Section Chair Joan Arnold. “I am thrilled that Caroline has been nominated to fill the position. I know firsthand her ability to create a vision and implement it. I look forward to the progress we will make under her leadership.”
Ciraolo is a partner at Kostelanetz & Fink, LLP and a founder of its Washington, DC office. Her practice focuses on complex civil tax controversies. She is a former Acting Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division and teaches at Georgetown University Law Center and at the University of Baltimore School of Law Graduate Program. She is the current President of the American College of Tax Counsel and the outgoing chair of the Section’s Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties Committee. Ciraolo has been an active member, frequent speaker and trusted leader in the Section and in the tax law community for decades.
In her new role, Ciraolo will work to fulfill the goals of the Section’s Diversity and Inclusion Plan with Section leadership and staff, as well as with two key Section committees: the Diversity Committee, which focuses on diversity-related programming at Section meetings and the Diversity in the Profession Committee, which addresses diversity and inclusion matters at the highest Section leadership levels.
“Bringing more diversity to the tax bar is essential to eliminating lingering implicit and institutional biases and making the tax bar inclusive of a wider variety of opinions and experiences. That’s why I am honored to serve in this new role and grateful for the opportunity to work with my colleagues throughout the tax bar to prioritize and enhance diversity and inclusion in the Section and the tax profession as a whole,” said Ciraolo. “I look forward to collaborating with individuals, organizations, and other stakeholders, and I encourage everyone to come forward with their ideas to accomplish this objective.”
The other incoming officers, as announced in February, are:
Chair-Elect:
C. Wells Hall, Charlotte, NC
Vice Chairs:
(For a one-year term)
R. David Wheat, Houston, TX (Administration)
Melissa L. Wiley, Washington, DC (Committee Operations)
Thomas D. Greenaway, Boston, MA (CLE)
Kurt L.P. Lawson, Washington, DC (Government Relations)
Sheri A. Dillon, Washington, DC (Pro Bono and Outreach)
Roberta F. Mann, Eugene, OR (Publications)
Secretary:
(For a one-year term)
Christine S. Speidel, Villanova, PA
Assistant Secretary:
(For a one-year term)
Lany L. Villalobos, Philadelphia, PA
Council Directors:
(For a three-year term)
John M. Colvin, Seattle, WA
Rachel Kleinberg, Palo Alto, CA
Robb Longman, Bethesda, MD
Susan E. Morgenstern, Cleveland, OH
Vanessa A. Scott, Washington, DC