NEW YORK (Sept. 3, 2025) — Kostelanetz partner Megan L. Brackney has become the new Chair of the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Tax Section for 2025-2026.
Megan’s term as Chair began on Aug. 11, 2025, at the close of the ABA’s 2025 Annual meeting in Toronto, Canada, and will last through August 2026.
The stated mission of the ABA’s Tax Section is “to serve our members and the public by providing education about taxes and tax systems, and by providing leadership to support the development of an equitable, efficient, and workable tax system.” The Tax Section is the largest professional association of tax lawyers, with roughly 13,000 members nationwide.
“I am honored to be chosen by my peers as chair of the ABA Tax Section, and I look forward to continuing the section’s goals of attracting and maintaining a strong membership among the tax bar, sharing the tremendous benefits of Tax Section membership, and continuing the section’s deep commitment to pro bono work and public service. That will include continuing the section’s practice of providing the IRS and Treasury Department with comments on proposed rules and regulations, particularly as they implement new tax legislation,” said Megan.
Megan continued, “I am also pleased that my term as chair will take place during Kostelanetz LLP’s 80th Anniversary year in 2026. During the lifetime of our firm, we have been stalwart supporters of the ABA Tax Section, a firm legacy that, in part, was cemented by our former colleague Jules Ritholz, who founded the ABA Tax Section’s Committee on Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties and who is remembered each year through the Jules Ritholz Memorial Merit Award.”
Many Kostelanetz attorneys serve or have served as Tax Section committee chairs and/or vice chairs including Abigail Burke, Caroline Ciraolo, Heather Fincher, Jay Nanavati, Bryan C. Skarlatos, Andrew Weiner, and Melissa Wiley.
Megan’s practice at Kostelanetz involves resolving compliance concerns, voluntary disclosures, civil audits, and criminal investigations for individuals, trusts, estates, corporations, and partnerships, including audits conducted under the IRS’s centralized audit regime of the Bipartisan Budget Act. Megan advocates for clients in IRS Appeals and represents clients in litigation in the U.S. Tax Court and federal district courts. She has successfully defended taxpayers against assessment of tax penalties, including income tax, trust fund recovery, and foreign information return penalties. Megan also assists clients with controversy matters and voluntary disclosures involving New York State and New York City and advises clients on tax issues that arise in other contexts, such as business and matrimonial disputes.
Chambers USA ranks Megan as a leader in Tax Controversy (Nationwide) and Tax Fraud (Nationwide), as well as a leading lawyer for High Net Worth private tax clients. Chambers has noted that Megan “is well regarded for her handling of both civil and criminal tax controversy issues. She acts for clients in federal district courts as well as the U.S. Tax Court.” One Chambers testimonial stated that Megan is “someone who can take on the most sophisticated of tax issues,” while another noted she is “an outstanding attorney who keeps up with all developments in the field.” She has also been recognized by New York Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers for her tax law work.
Megan is an adjunct professor at New York University School of Law, where she teaches classes in Tax Procedure. In addition to being a member of the ABA Section of Taxation, she is also active as a member of the Executive Committee of the New York State Bar Association Section of Taxation and a fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel.
Megan has previously served as the Vice Chair of Committee Operations and a Council Director for the ABA Section of Taxation, the Chair of the Taxation Committee of the New York County Lawyers’ Association, and the Chair of the Individual and Family Taxation Committee of the ABA Tax Section. She received the ABA Tax Section’s John S. Nolan Fellowship for 2008-2009. Megan is a frequent author for tax publications and is a speaker at national and local conferences on topics related to tax, tax ethics, tax penalties, and tax procedure.
For nearly 80 years, Kostelanetz LLP has built a global reputation as a law firm of choice for clients facing high-stakes controversies, negotiations with government agencies, and complex domestic and international tax planning decisions. Our attorneys have extensive experience in tax controversy, tax fraud defense, white-collar criminal defense, securities enforcement defense, trust and estate planning, transactional tax planning, and government investigations. We are regularly called upon to handle the most challenging and sensitive matters and internal investigations. Important parts of the firm’s practice also include commercial litigation and government procurement and contracting.
