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TEL: (617) 338-2860

Joseph X. Donovan

Counsel

Joseph X. Donovan serves as counsel in the Boston office of Sullivan & Worcester. Mr. Donovan uses his expertise in state and local tax law to consult with the firm’s international and domestic clients with respect to state and local tax planning and controversies. Mr. Donovan served as the Deputy General Counsel of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue from 2003-2006. In this capacity, he was responsible for working with the General Counsel to manage the Department’s legal division - the group responsible for developing public written statements of DOR policy, litigating tax cases in the Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board and drafting and providing comments on proposed tax legislation. In April, 2007, Mr. Donovan was selected to serve on a commission charged with studying the Massachusetts corporate tax structure and making recommendations for appropriate changes to the legislature. Commission appointees were chosen jointly by Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi.

Bar Admissions

  • Massachusetts, 1977

Publications

  • "What is Massachusetts Corporate Tax Basis?," State Tax Notes (April 9 2007)
  • BNA Multistate Tax Portfolio on Formulary Apportionment Methods (1998)
  • Refund Opportunities for Corporations Filing Consolidated Returns in Massachusetts, Journal of State Taxation, Vol. 8, No. 3 (1989)
  • Massachusetts Sales and Use Tax Manual (1989)

Teaching & Speaking Engagements

  • "The State of New England: People, Politics and Policies," Joseph W. Martin Institute for Law and Society (March 2008)
  • "Advanced Sales and Use Tax in Massachusetts," Lorman Education Services (July 2007)
  • "Special Issues Affecting the Corporate Tax Basis in Massachusetts," Boston Bar Association (June 2007)"Massachusetts Developments and Outlook for 2007," Tax Executives Institute (February 2007)
  • Adjunct Faculty Member, Suffolk University
  • Adjunct Faculty Member, Northeastern University
  • Adjunct Faculty Member, NYU State and Local Taxation Institute

Awards & Honors

  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers (2006, 2007)

Education

  • J.D., with honors, University of Michigan Law School, 1977
  • A.B., Cornell University, 1973
Practice Areas
Languages
  • Russian
News
Seminars & Presentations