You Don't Take "Tax" to Save the World

You Don't Take "Tax" to Save the World

by Dianne Bennett

One of the first professors I had was Joe Laufer. He was a classic professor. Like the ones from the old TV show, "Paper Chase." In fact, when "Paper Chase" came out, Laufer said to me, "Well, it's a good thing we don't have professors like that here." We all just thought that was hysterical because Laufer was as close as they came to the character the actor John Housemann played in "Paper Chase."

Laufer taught us the Socratic method of law and was considered rather old-fashioned, but I use his handouts to this day. He really had his heart in his teaching and taught classic tort law. But the teachers who probably had the greatest impact on me were Ken Joyce and Lou Del Cotto. They taught tax and were also somewhat traditional - but they were very entertaining and sharp.

I originally went to law school to save the world, but figured out the world wasn't exactly open to being saved and wound up taking tax courses. I had Joyce for Property and Del Cotto for Tax I. I am so glad it was a required course; I don't know that I would have taken it if it hadn't been required. I took Tax II because Tax I was interesting and then took Tax III because Tax II was interesting. Tax isn't immoral; to me it is amoral. You don't take Tax to save the world, but I found it so intellectually challenging that I just kept taking the courses.

UB produces more people who have taken a lot of tax courses than most schools because of these two outstanding professors. They worked closely with each other and were teachers above all else. They physically and emotionally threw themselves into their teaching.

Here at Hodgson, Russ, we probably have over twenty people in tax. There are about 130 lawyers in the firm in the Buffalo office, and twenty-some of us are tax lawyers. That is partly the result of the strong tax program at UB.