John McGown practices general tax, estate planning, tax disputes, tax-exempt organizations, and probate law. A certified public accountant, he has been a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel since 1997.
Active in State of Idaho tax issues, Mr. McGown successfully represented the taxpayer in what were reputed to be three of the four largest individual income tax deficiency cases ever issued by the Idaho State Tax Commission. He is one of a handful of individuals nationwide to be certified as a qualified mediator for multistate tax disputes under the Multistate Tax Commission’s Alternate Dispute Resolution Program. He has served as outside counsel to the Idaho Community Foundation, Inc. for over 20 years.
Mr. McGown is on the Executive Planning Committee of the Idaho State Tax Institute and served on the Executive Committee of Associated Taxpayers of Idaho.
Practice Areas
Education
Law School: University of Denver, LL.M., in Taxation, 1981, top five percent of class
University of Colorado, J.D., 1974
Undergraduate: University of Kentucky, B.S., Accounting, 1971
Community Activities
Law Day Volunteer, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
Pioneer Toastmasters 1990-2011, President 1991
Sunday School Teacher, 1998-1999, 2003-2004
Volunteer Mediator for Idaho State Bar Fee Dispute Program, 2003-present
The ARC, Inc., Board of Directors, 1987-1993 and President, 1991-1992
Professional Activities
Visiting Professor, University of Idaho College of Law, 2010
Adjunctive Faculty, University of Idaho College of Law, 2006
Adjunctive Faculty, Boise State University teaching Research in Federal Taxation, 1983
Associate Professor, Boise State University, 2000-2002 (graduate faculty)
Deputy District Attorney, Weld County, Colorado, 1975-1978
Certified Public Accountant: Colorado, 1975 (inactive); Idaho, since 1982
Bar Admissions
Idaho State Bar Association, founding member and chair 2008-2009 of Taxation, Probate, and Trust Law Section
Professional Memberships
Idaho Society of CPAs, Chair of the Personal Financial Planning Committee, 2007-2009
Idaho Tax Practitioner Liaison Committee (to the Internal Revenue Service) 2003-present, Chair 2007-2009
Associated Taxpayers of Idaho, Executive Committee 1995-2002
United Way of Ada County, Audit Review Panel 1986-1991
American Bar Association, Taxation Section
Idaho Association of Commerce & Industry
Idaho Community Foundation, Inc., member and outside counsel since 1990
Accomplishments
Best Lawyers in America – “Lawyer of the Year,” Tax Law, 2013
Best Lawyers in America – Tax Law, Trusts, and Estates, 2007-present
Certified as an Estate Planning Specialist since 2010 by the Estate Law Specialist Board, Inc., an organization accredited by the American Bar Association.
Helped clients in having their individual income tax returns be accepted as originally filed (with no tax payable) after the IRS issued a “30-day letter” alleging back taxes, interest, and penalties in excess of $3.7 million
A frequent lecturer, John McGown has conducted over 100continuing education presentations to various professional groups.
For almost 20 years, Mr. McGown served as the column editor for “Tax Thoughts” in The Advocate, a monthly publication of the Idaho State Bar Association. He is the author of numerous articles published in TAXES – The Tax Magazine, Taxation for Lawyers, The State and Local Tax Lawyer, The Journal of Taxation, The Journal of State Taxation, and the Idaho Law Review.
He was the Idaho correspondent for State Tax Notes, a national publication by Tax Analysts, 1993-2009. He served as editor of Idaho Tax Alert for over five years.
Idaho Author, The State and Local Tax Lawyer, 1996-2005.
Co-author: “State Taxation of Trusts and Their Beneficiaries When There Are Multiple State Contacts,” Journal of State Taxation, 2001.
“Major Charitable Gifts – How Much Control Can Donors Keep and Charities Give Up?” Journal of Taxation, 1999.
“Individuals Escape Penalties for Failure to Amend Incorrect Federal Tax Returns,” 24 Idaho Law Review 234, 1988.
Column Editor, Tax Thoughts, The Advocate, 1984-2003. Co-author: “The Evolution of Powers of Attorney in Idaho: What a Practitioner Needs to Know About Their Advantages, Limitations and How to Use Them.” The Advocate (Journal of the Idaho State Bar Association), Vol. 55, No. 8, pp. 26-32 (2012).
