Taxation (LLM)

Program Description

In this LLM specialization, you’ll obtain comprehensive and systematic training in the nation's most prestigious tax program, and gain the skills you'll need to respond effectively to complex problems.

You can choose from one of our five suggested courses of study in general taxation, business taxation, international taxation (for US-trained attorneys), estate planning, or tax policy. They provide guided paths through our 50+ tax classes so that you establish a strong foundation in the practice area you've chosen for your career. You also will meet with your faculty liaison and experienced academic and career administrators before finalizing a curriculum that meets your goals.

Admissions

• Eligibility and Admission Standards
• How to Apply
• Scholarships and Financing

Program Requirements

All full-time and part-time LLM in Taxation students must complete at least 24 credits overall, 20 of which are in advanced tax coursework. Advanced tax courses are most tax courses other than Income Taxation, Survey of Income Taxation, or the Tax Clinic. Foreign-trained attorneys are also required to take the summer courses Introduction to U.S. Law and Introduction to U.S. Legal Practice, absent a waiver. 

All full-time LLM in Taxation students must take a tax procedure course for either one or two credits (students may choose from Survey of Tax Procedure, Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties and Procedures, or Civil Tax Controversies and Litigation) and a course in tax policy. The tax policy requirement can be met by taking a course such as: Tax Policy and Public Finance Colloquium, International Tax Policy, Comparative Tax Policy, or Tax Policy Seminar. (Not every tax seminar meets this requirement. For example, the Advanced Corporate Tax Seminar does not meet our tax policy requirement.)

Part-time LLM in Taxation students are required to take a tax procedure course for either one or two credits, but are not required to take a tax policy course. Please review our degree requirements for more information.

International Tax Program students have very specific degree requirements.

Aside from the tax procedure (full and part-time) and tax policy (full-time only) requirements, Graduate Tax Program students are free to design a program to suit their individual needs. The Graduate Tax Program strongly recommends that all students get some exposure to corporate tax, partnership tax, and international tax. Many employers will expect our graduates to have some background in these areas. 

• Students often take Corporate Tax while enrolled in the LLM, unless they have already taken a JD-level course covering Sections 304, 305, 306, 338, 351, and 368 of the Internal Revenue Code.
• All students should consider taking Taxation of Property Transactions, as it provides a basis in concepts that pervade the tax law and all graduate tax courses. We should caution that while this course may cover foundational concepts, it is not an easy course. It is recommended that students take Taxation of Property Transactions if their JD courses did not cover such issues as the treatment of non-recourse debt, basic financial instruments, limitations on losses, and capital gains. Instructors in the more advanced courses assume that students have mastered this material and do not spend class time reviewing these issues and concepts. 

Because NYU has such a wide selection of tax courses, it is possible for each student to design a program of study to focus on areas of particular interest. (The Taxation LLM does not have formal majors, minors, or concentrations—these are simply thematic groupings.) These areas include General Taxation, Business Taxation, International Taxation, Estate Planning, and Tax Policy. Our advice may vary depending on the geographic region in which a student would like to practice and/or the student's preferred employer type. Generally, in larger markets, such as DC and NYC, practitioners tend to be more narrowly specialized, while in smaller or mid-sized markets, practitioners may be expected to have a broader knowledge base. For example, students in smaller or mid-sized markets may want to take coursework in estate and gift taxation, while students looking for transactional work in NYC may not need coursework in estate and gift taxation.

Below, we have listed some suggested course combinations students may want to consider, depending on the area in which they would like to practice. Some of these courses are not offered in every academic year (e.g., Advanced Corporate Tax Problems: International), though most are. Students in the Executive LLM and MSL programs should note that most, but not all, of the courses listed below are offered online. These are simply suggested curricula—the program director or a faculty member can suggest alternatives from our full course listings.

Areas of Concentration in Taxation

General Taxation

If you are seeking a general background in taxation and you do not yet know in what area of tax you want to practice, we recommend a broad exposure.

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Major Requirements
Corporate Taxation I & II		4
Taxation of Property Transactions		3
International Tax I & II (taken in the fall) 1		4
Survey of Tax Procedure (taken in the fall) 2		2
International Tax III		2
Tax Policy		2
Partnership Taxation		3
Electives
Other Elective Credits 3		4-5
Total Credits		24

¹

Or International Tax I (taken in the fall), and International Tax II (taken in the spring).

²

Or Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties and Procedures (taken in the spring), or Civil Tax Controversies and Litigation (taken in the spring).

³

Common choices include Timing Issues and the Income Tax, Taxation of Executive Compensation, Estate and Gift Tax, Income Taxation of Trusts and Estates I, a course in Multistate Taxation, Taxation of Private Equity Transactions, or Taxation of Mergers and Acquisitions.

Electives might include an advanced course in a particular area (e.g., Taxation of Financial Instruments, Multistate Tax, Tax Treaties, etc.). Students should consider coursework in multistate tax, executive compensation, or estate and gift tax/income tax of trusts and estates. It is possible to enter specialized groups or firms that focus on those areas, though in smaller markets or firms, one may be called upon to handle a broader range of areas than in larger markets where specialization is more common. 

A part-time student takes several years to complete their program, and thus may take a course listed as a fall semester course in a different semester or for fewer credits. For example, instead of the four-credit Corporate Tax I & II course, a part-time student would typically take separate, two-credit sections of Corporate Tax 1 and Corporate Tax II in the fall, spring, or summer semesters. Part-time students who have taken a course in corporate taxation at the JD-level, but who would like additional coverage of taxable and tax-free corporate mergers and acquisitions should consider taking the spring semester two credit course Corporate Tax II.

Business Taxation

Our business tax offerings include the following courses: Corporate Taxation I & II (for three or four credits), Partnership Taxation (three credits), International Tax I, II, and III (six credits), Taxation of Mergers & Acquisitions (two credits), Advanced Corporate Tax Problems (ACTP) (two credits), Taxation of Private Equity Transactions (two credits), Taxation of Financial Instruments (two credits, Taxation of Executive Compensation (two credits), and Taxation of Business Conduits (two credits). This area of concentration is designed for students who wish to concentrate in business tax. Depending on your prior scholastic or practice experience, several courses in the corporate area are also recommended for those wishing to concentrate in international taxation.

Full-time students who have not already taken a course in corporate taxation should take Corporate Tax I & II in the fall semester. Students with a solid background in corporate taxation are encouraged to proceed to advanced corporate offerings. Students who have taken a JD-level course in corporate taxation but would like additional coverage of taxable and tax-free corporate mergers and acquisitions should take the two-credit course Corporate Tax II.

International Tax I (or International Tax I & II) is typically taken in the fall semester. International Tax III is offered in the spring. (Students who take International Tax I in the fall semester may take International Tax II and International Tax III concurrently in the spring.)

Students interested in private equity and real estate work may want to consider taking Partnership Taxation in the fall semester so that they can take Advanced Partnership Tax I in the spring. (Students can take Advanced Partnership Tax II concurrently with Partnership Taxation in the spring.)

We also recommend one or both of Taxation of Property Transactions and Timing Issues and the Income Tax if you have not taken many technical tax courses yet.

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Major Requirements
Taxation of Business Pass-Throughs		2
Taxation of Property Transactions		3
Survey of Tax Procedure		1
Corporate Tax I & II		4
International Tax I & II 1		4
Tax Policy		2
Partnership Taxation		3
Taxation of M & A 2		2
Taxation of Executive Compensation 3		2
International Tax III		2
Total Credits		25

¹

Or International Tax I (taken in the fall), and International Tax II (taken in the spring).

²

Or ACTP (taken in the spring) or Taxation of Private Equity Transactions (taken in the spring).

³

Or Timing Issues and Income Tax.

Note: If you have already taken corporate taxation in your JD program, we recommend that you proceed to more advanced courses.

International Taxation

The core of our offerings in international taxation consists of the following courses: International Tax I & II (four credits), International Tax III (two credits), Tax Treaties (four credits), ACTP International, Taxation of International Business Transactions (three credits) (Professor permission required for those not in the LLM in International Tax program), International Tax Policy, Transfer Pricing, and Comparative Tax Policy. To focus on international tax, we suggest that you take Corporate Taxation I & II at NYU in your first semester if you have not already taken a similar course in your JD program. If you have recently completed a corporate tax course, you should consider taking the spring courses Advanced Corporate Tax Problems or Taxation of Mergers & Acquisitions as part of your study of international tax.

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Major Requirements
Taxation of Property Transactions		3
Survey of Tax Procedure		1
Corporate Tax I & II		3-4
International Tax I & II 1		4
International or Comparative Tax Policy		2
International Tax III		2
Tax Treaties		2-4
Taxation of Mergers and Acquisitions		2
Transfer Pricing		2
Total Credits		24

¹

Or International Tax I (taken in the fall), and International Tax II (taken in the spring).

Note: The instructor's permission is required to enroll in International Business Transactions, which is offered only in the spring semester and is primarily intended for students in the LLM in International Tax program. 

Estate Planning

There are many different valid courses to take in this area, and our advice may need to be tailored to each student's goals. For example, we have part-time students who are currently practicing in estate planning, as well as full-time students who may not know yet if they want to focus largely/exclusively in the area.

There are many courses in this area, and it is still important to get a foundation in several general areas of tax that aren't exclusively focused on estate planning. Some students already have taken coursework in the basics and are free to move on, while others may need to both establish their generalist skills in addition to their focus on estate planning. For those who have taken only a basic tax course in their JD program/first law degree, it will not be possible to take all of these interesting courses for academic credit. Students may consider auditing a course that will not fit in their course schedule. Please as the program director for advice on which courses to take for credit vs audit.

Some students are currently in (or want to join) a practice that is almost exclusively focused on estate planning clients, while others may be in a firm (or seeking one) where both estate planning work and transactional work are common. Our advice differs based on the type of practice and the market in which the student will practice. In larger markets, specialization is more common, while in smaller markets, a jack-of-all-trades approach is more common.

For example, a full-time student seeking an entry-level position who is not sure if they want to do estate and gift work should perhaps take a generalist route in the fall semester until they have a better sense of their interests and market preference. Generally, employers in larger markets who work with multinationals, fund work, real estate, etc., are more interested in seeing specific courses and grades, and tend to be more competitive in terms of GPA. So while a student's skills and knowledge are vital to their future practice, the more competitive positions/markets focus more on the specifics of your transcript. Other employers may be less focused on the specific courses you took.

For further illustration, there is one school of thought that full-time students who are not fully committed to the practice area may not want to take more than a few courses in this area in order to keep their options open for a range of jobs/markets. In that case, a firm with a heavy M & A practice might raise an eyebrow if they see a lot of estate planning courses on a transcript, and they may see other candidates as being more focused on their client base. Smaller firms that don't specialize in this area may be fine if you only audit a course in this area or take just one for credit.

The core of our offerings in the estate planning area consists of three courses: Estate & Gift Taxation (three credits), Estate Planning (two credits), and Income Taxation of Trusts & Estates I (two credits). For students looking to dip their toe into the area with a single course, either Estate and Gift Tax or Income Tax of Trusts and Estates would be a good choice. The former covers the transfer tax regime, which is a tax on the transfer of dynastic wealth. It applies to very large estates that transfer assets during the life of the person (gift tax) or after their death (estate tax), and in the case when a generation is skipped over (GSTT). The latter course covers the income tax and fiduciary rules which arise in estates/trusts of any size when there are income-producing assets.

For those looking to focus exclusively on estate planning, there is still a baseline of general tax coursework that we feel all students should get exposure to: Corporate, International, and Partnership Tax. Tax of Property Transactions and Timing Issues and the Income Tax are also beneficial courses, providing a solid foundation for your other courses while also remediating any gaps in coverage you may have from prior tax coursework. You may need to take less coursework in this area than would normally be recommended for a student who is interested in a corporate/transactional practice advising multinationals, funds, and the like.

Should you retake courses that you already took at the JD level? For someone interested in focusing heavily in estate planning, generally not—there are too many other interesting options in this area to spend time reinventing the wheel. If you have taken estate and gift taxation or corporate tax at the JD level, then you do not need to retake those. That said, if you are interested in blending transactional tax and estate planning (more common at smaller/mid-sized firms; less common at large firms), then you may want to retake a course or two, and not focus entirely on estate planning courses.

If you have not already taken any corporate tax, the material in Corporate Tax II (covering formation and reorgs) may be less essential to someone focused entirely on estate planning. Taking either the online Corporate Tax I (for part-time students) or the daytime three-credit option of Corporate Tax I & II in the Spring 2024 semester (for full-time students) would work well. As to international tax, we have traditionally taught it as a six-credit series, but some of our four-credit offerings of International Tax I & II (aimed at full-time students) also survey the material covered in International Tax III. We offer a one-credit International Estate Planning course which focuses on the relevant aspects in the transfer tax and T & E context. One approach might be to take International Tax I (Inbound-the US taxation of foreign persons' US-source income) to learn the source rules in depth, and then pair that with International Estate Planning, perhaps auditing International Tax II and III. If you can fit in International Tax III, many practitioners find the coverage of PFICs in that course to be very useful.

Professor Manny teaches several valuable courses in this area: Tax-exempt Organizations (2 credits), Private Foundations and Their Alternatives (1 credit), and Tax Aspects of Charitable Giving (2 credits). Many practitioners also find state and local tax (SALT) issues to be relevant if their clients don't limit themselves to one US state, so consider the Multistate Tax classes even if you do not plan on specializing in the SALT area.

There are some non-tax courses that some students consider as electives or asking to sit in on—Trusts and Estates, Family Law, and Art Law, are some examples.

Here are two examples of programs—one for those who already do mostly/exclusively estate and gift work ("Heavy"), and the other for those looking to keep options open while still focusing in this area ("Versatile"). These don't add up exactly to 24 credits, as there are differing options for these courses for full-time and part-time students. Again, if you have already taken one of these courses at another law school, you can free up some credits for other courses by not retaking a course.

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Major Requirements
Estate and Gift Taxation		3
Taxation of Property Transactions 1		2-3
Survey of Tax Procedure 2		1-2
Income Tax of Trusts and Estates I		2
Income Tax of Trusts and Estates II (focused on Grantor Trusts)		1
Corporate Tax I 3		2-4
Estate Planning		2
Partnership Taxation		3
Tax Aspects of Charitable		1-2
International Tax I		2
International Estate Planning		1
Tax Policy		2
Multistate Tax: Income Tax'n		2
Total Credits		24-29

¹

There is a two credit online version of tax of property transactions which is limited to part-time students. The three credit on campus version of this course is intended for either full-time or part-time students. Similarly we have online versions of some courses (e.g., Corporate Tax I, Tax Policy, and Tax Aspects of Charitable Giving) which are fewer credits than their on campus counterparts. Again, these online sections are limited to part-time students.

²

Or another procedure course that meets the tax procedure requirement.

³

Or Corporate Tax I & II.

Tax Policy

If you are interested in a career in government or in teaching, you should strive to obtain a broad exposure to both tax policy and substantive tax issues. The Tax Policy and Public Finance Colloquium is an excellent option to consider. We offer a broad variety of tax policy courses. In addition, we recommend taking non-policy courses to round out your tax background. Some tax policy courses are mutually exclusive with each other, so as to limit students to a single tax policy course initially. Since these are small seminars that are required for full-time students, we want to make sure everyone gets a shot at their required course before we allow students to add multiple sections. We may ask you to wait until the first week of the course in question to add a second policy seminar. Students should exercise care when bidding on more than one tax policy course and can contact the program director closer to the start of the course to see if additional policy courses may be taken.

Independent Writing Requirement

There is no independent writing requirement for students in the LLM in Taxation Program. With permission, you may earn up to two credits for a directed research project supervised by one of the tax faculty. No exceptions can be made to the maximum of two credits for directed research.

Online Courses

In addition to on-campus courses, we have also offered asynchronous, pre-recorded, online courses for over ten years. Our faculty have a rule that requires full-time students to take on-campus courses in person to maximize faculty-student interactions. Online courses are largely limited to our part-time students unless the course is not otherwise offered in the current semester in real-time. Some of our online courses were recorded in a prior semester (either in a classroom or in a studio setting) and current online students have access to all class video recordings at the outset of the course. Other courses are being recorded in the current semester as they meet on-campus. Online students gain access to a new video recording after each class meeting. Traditionally, in "combined" courses, all students (on-campus and online) prepare for class by completing the same problem sets, take the same exam, and are graded on the same grading curve.

Note that students studying on an F-1 visa historically have been limited to a single online course per semester under visa regulations. The regulations for J visa holders do not explicitly allow for any online study. Finally, students whose first degree in law was earned outside of the US cannot use online courses to qualify for the New York bar exam under section 520.6 of the bar examiners rules.  

Foreign-Trained Attorneys and the NY Bar Exam

Students in our International Taxation LLM (ITP) and some of our students in our Taxation LLM programs have already received their first law degree outside of the U.S. These students are often interested in sitting for the New York bar exam.  The topic of bar exam eligibility is complex, and can depend on one's prior legal education. The first step is to ask the NY bar examiners to review your educational reviews to find out if you can use an LLM to qualify to sit for the bar exam. We advise you to read about the requirements online here, and that you also read about some of the specific courses students might take if they were not educated in a qualifying common law legal system here.

In brief, the tax and international tax programs can be structured to satisfy the curricular requirements under section 520.6 to sit for the bar exam for many attorneys (again, this is a complex issue, so please do read our resources to see how the rules apply to your situation). ITP students receive a detailed memo during summer registration which offers suggested courses to meet both their degree requirements and those of the bar exam.  Foreign-trained attorneys in the Taxation LLM program should reach out to John Stephens to plan a set of courses that can satisfy the bar exam requirements as well as your other goals. Keep in mind that there are additional requirements after one has passed the bar exam to actually become licensed, including passing the MPRE (multistate professional responsibility exam), "character and fitness" review, the section 520.16 requirement to perform pro bono work, and the section 520.18 requirement to work in a law office or to have previously worked in a law office to satisfy the "skills competency and professional values" requirements. The bar examiners have issued an FAQ to answer some questions about the recent section 520.18 skills competency requirement. Many students in our international tax program have prior legal experience in their home jurisdiction, and thus may be able to satisfy the section 520.18 requirement with this experience. Note that the coursework taken to satisfy section 520.6 does not satisfy the “pathway 1” option for section 520.18.  The NY State Court of Appeals did allow students to take online classes to qualify for the bar exam in the Fall 2020 through spring 2022 semesters, but they have not extended that waiver beyond spring/summer 2022. Students hoping to sit for the bar exam in NY on the basis of an LLM degree should not take any online classes.

Sample Plan of Study

This sample plan of study is for a student in the General Taxation concentration. All other concentrations are established in close consultation with an adviser.

Plan of Study Grid

1st Semester/Term		Credits
Corporate Taxation I & II		4
Taxation of Property Transactions		3
International Tax I & II		4
	Credits	11
2nd Semester/Term
International Tax III		2
Tax Policy		2
Partnership Taxation		3
Survey of Tax Procedure		2
	Credits	9
3rd Semester/Term
Elective		2
Elective		2
	Credits	4
	Total Credits	24

Learning Outcomes

In accordance with Revised ABA Standard 302; N.Y. Court of Appeals Rule 520.18(a)(1) please find an inventory of student learning outcomes that covers the areas of “substantive knowledge and procedural law”; lawyering skills; and “proper professional and ethical responsibilities to clients and the legal system.”

Tax Law

Find out more about Tax at NYU Law.

Policies 

Program Policies

Transfer Credit Policy

Transfer credits are treated as elective non-tax courses, even if they are on a tax law subject. Requests to take a course for transfer credit may be denied, for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, how long ago they were taken, format (i.e., no correspondence or undergraduate courses), etc. Up to four transfer credits may be approved by the vice dean and faculty director. We cannot award transfer credits for coursework which was already used towards another completed degree program, such as tax credits taken during a JD program. However, we can award advanced standing for tax courses taken by JD or visiting students at NYU Law, subject to restrictions.

NYU Policies

University-wide policies can be found on the New York University Policy pages.

School of Law Policies

Additional academic policies can be found on the School of Law academic policies page.