Richard Cope Litwin
For three decades, Richard C. Litwin has helped resolve state and local tax issues for individuals and businesses. Since 2008, his Georgia-based, national practice has been 100% dedicated to state and local tax law issues with state taxing agencies in Georgia, in other U.S. states and in multiple states/jurisdictions for tax law.
As a former Assistant Attorney General in the Tax Section of the Georgia Attorney General’s Office, Richard leverages insight and experience from the perspective of a taxing authority. Before building his own state and local tax practice, Richard was a partner with a boutique litigation firm in Atlanta. Early in his career Richard was a tax accountant at the former Arthur Andersen and worked in the Criminal Division of the State of Georgia, Department of Law, where he represented the State of Georgia in capital felony appeals before the Supreme Court of Georgia.
His counsel on hundreds of state and local tax matters has helped protect the financial interests of both individuals and businesses. Notably, he obtained a withdrawal of a $10 million trust fund assessment issued against the managing member of a limited liability company (LLC) that owned a chain of franchised restaurants by convincing the state taxing agency that the relevant statute under which the assessment was issued applied to officers and employees of corporations but not to members, managers and employees of LLCs. He also obtained a reduction from a county taxing authority (for three years) in the value of property from $1.795M to $930,000.
Richard has earned the highest national peer rating (AV rated) by Martindale-Hubbell for his counsel in state and local tax law. He has been named to Georgia’s list of Super Lawyers every year since 2008 and to the Top 100 Lawyers in Georgia for Tax Law (2012). U.S.News & World Report includes Richard among the list of “Best Lawyers and Law Firms” for state and local tax law. In 2021, Richard was voted by his professional peers as the 2021 U.S. News – Best Lawyers “Lawyer of the Year” for metro Atlanta in the category of Tax Litigation/Controversy. His state and local tax clients have helped him achieve the highest rating of 10 and a clients’ choice ranking with the online legal resource AVVO.
Richard currently serves or has served on several task forces and committees specific to state taxation including: Georgia Department of Revenue Attorney Liaison Committee (Co-moderator); Georgia Department of Revenue Special Task Force on Consolidated Income Tax Return Regulations; State Bar of Georgia Tax Section’s Georgia Tax Tribunal Task Force; Education Committee of the State Bar of Georgia Section of Taxation (Chair); Georgia Department of Revenue Business Advisory Committee.
Richard Litwin speaks frequently on state and local tax issues. He has articles published in the Georgia Bar Journal and other national publications and law journals. He also writes about state and local tax issues in his blog, “Pass the SALT.” Richard Litwin is licensed by the State Bar of Georgia and is authorized to negotiate with taxing authorities in any U.S. state. He earned his law degree from Emory University School of Law and earned his Bachelor’s of Science degree (cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of South Carolina (USC). He is an active volunteer for Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta. Richard is an enthusiastic supporter of USC athletics and enjoys playing tennis.
Atlanta, Georgia 30350
