WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 17, 2020) – Kostelanetz & Fink is pleased to announce that partners Caroline D. Ciraolo and Jay R. Nanavati have been selected for inclusion on the 2020 Washington DC Super Lawyers list. Ciraolo, who was previously included on the list in 2018 and 2019, was recognized for her excellence in tax law. Nanavati, who was also listed in 2019, is ranked as a top white-collar criminal defense attorney. Super Lawyers describes itself as “a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.”
In 2019, 11 Kostelanetz & Fink attorneys, including 10 partners, were included on either the New York Metro or Washington DC annual Super Lawyers list.*
Ciraolo and Nanavati co-founded Kostelanetz & Fink’s Washington, D.C. office in 2017 and have built a national practice representing clients in complex and sophisticated civil federal and state tax controversies, including representation in sensitive audits, administrative appeals, and litigation in federal and state courts and administrative tax tribunals, providing related tax advice, conducting internal investigations, navigating domestic and foreign compliance options including voluntary disclosures, and representing individuals and institutions in criminal tax and white collar investigations and prosecutions.
Ciraolo previously served as Acting Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division from 2015 to 2017. She is chair of the Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties Committee of the ABA Section of Taxation, Vice President of the American College of Tax Counsel, and an Adjunct Professor at the Georgetown University Law Center (International Tax Controversies, Criminal Tax Law and Procedure) and University of Baltimore School of Law Graduate Tax Program (Investigation, Prosecution and Defense of Tax Crimes). Prior to joining the department, Ciraolo was chair of the Tax Controversy and Litigation practice group of a regional firm in Baltimore, Maryland, where she represented individuals and businesses in all phases of state and federal civil tax controversies and criminal tax investigations and prosecutions. She has appeared before the IRS, the Comptroller of Maryland and the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue, the Maryland Tax Court, the U.S. Tax Court, U.S. District Courts, the Maryland circuit and appellate courts and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth, Ninth, and Federal Circuits.
Nanavati maintains a nationwide practice, focusing on white-collar criminal defense with an emphasis on tax-related matters. He represents individuals and entities facing investigations and prosecutions by the IRS, the FBI, state investigative agencies, U.S. Attorney’s offices, and the Department of Justice Tax Division. His clients rely on his ability to analyze cases from the government’s perspective and trust his sound judgment to guide them through their most difficult challenges. Mr. Nanavati is a Fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel, a member of the ABA’s Section of Taxation, Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties Committee, as well as of the ABA’s Criminal Justice Section, White Collar Crime Committee, and a member of the Edward Bennett Williams Inn of Court. Before joining K&F, Nanavati spent more than a decade as both a federal and state prosecutor. He supervised more than 30 federal tax prosecutors and oversaw criminal tax enforcement for a region covering 22 states, and he has conducted dozens of jury trials and hundreds of bench trials.
Super Lawyers’ annual lists comprise a limited number of attorneys in each state who are chosen based off of an evaluation of 12 indicators including peer recognition and professional achievement in legal practice. Only 5 percent of applicant attorneys are chosen, according to Super Lawyers.
Kostelanetz & Fink, LLP has built a national reputation as the law firm of choice for clients facing high-stakes negotiations and controversies with government agencies. K&F attorneys are considered to be some of the country’s foremost experts on tax controversies, white collar defense and regulatory matters. An important part of the firm’s practice includes tax and estate planning and representation in government procurement and government contracting.
*Partner Yoram Keinan’s ranking in Super Lawyers for 2019 was linked to his previous firm’s profile. Keinan joined Kostelanetz & Fink in November 2018.
