LL.M, Taxation, New York University, 1999
JD, cum laude, Tulane University Law School, 1997
BS, Accounting, University of New Orleans, 1992

Jay is licensed to practice law in the State of Texas and the State of Louisiana, the United States Tax Court and the United States Court of Federal Claims.  Before attending law school, Jay worked as certified public accountant in New Orleans, Louisiana, but his CPA license is "inactive" while practicing law. 

• Louisiana State Bar
• Texas State Bar

State and local tax experience

Jay is a strong advocate on behalf of clients covering a wide array of state and local tax issues, including franchise, sales and use tax, property, severance, motor fuels and unclaimed property.  Jay represents taxpayers in all phases of a tax controversy, from audit defense through administrative appeals, including SOAH hearings, mediation and settlement conferences and judicial proceedings. In addition, Jay advises clients on a variety of tax and business planning matters, including tax consequences of multistate mergers and acquisitions, restructuring of a company's organization or activities to obtain favorable state tax treatment, participation in amnesty programs and filing Voluntary Disclosure Agreements to abate penalties and interest on state and local taxes, and obtaining written rulings from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts on various sales and use tax and franchise tax matters. Further, Jay has worked on multi-state tax research and planning projects, including nexus questionnaires and domestic transfer pricing issues.

As part of Norton Rose Fulbright's property tax group, Jay has substantial experience in handling a wide range of administrative and judicial controversies related to Texas property tax issues.  Jay represents clients in all aspects of property tax controversy matters, from administrative matters before appraisal districts, including the filing of protests, negotiating with Appraisal District personnel and appearing before Appraisal Review Boards to all levels of judicial proceedings, in order to resolve property tax matters.

In addition to his advocacy experience, Jay handles compliance work for clients, such as filing renditions and preparing exemption applications for hospital, churches, and other exempt organizations, and planning work, including working on tax abatement agreements and negotiating PILOT agreements.

Jay's experience in the property tax area includes:

• Exemption issues for airport-related facilities in Travis County
• Business personal property issues statewide for a major retailer
• Foreign Trade Zone issues in Harris County
• Distribution center valuation issues in Harris County
• Medical office building valuation issues in Harris and Montgomery counties.
• Interstate commerce issues for natural gas in a storage facility located in Harrison County
• Appraisal roll correction issues in Orange and Jefferson counties.

Exempt organization experience

Jay represents and counsels tax-exempt organizations on a variety of matters covering the entire life cycle of an exempt organization, from advising on formation and choice of entity issues, preparation and advocacy in obtaining tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service and other governmental entities, advising on compliance and reporting issues for exempt organizations, providing guidance to boards of such organizations regarding corporate governance issues and assisting with the termination of such organizations.  Jay has handled matters for a wide variety of exempt organizations, including public charities, private foundations, donor advised funds, support organization, religious organizations, schools, museums, and hospitals and other medical research organizations.

Jay's experience in his exempt organization practice includes:

• Compliance with federal and state exempt organization tax laws, including Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and state laws governing exemptions from real property tax and sales and use tax.
• Unrelated business income tax (UBIT) and related issues.
• Intermediate sanctions issues.
• Excise taxes applicable to private foundations, such as excess business holdings and taxable expenditures.
• Representation of exempt organization in audits, examinations, and investigations by the Internal Revenue Service and the Texas Attorney General.
• Advice regarding program-related investments.

Federal tax matters experience

In addition to general federal tax advice, Jay has represented clients in audits and before the IRS Appeals Office for matters involving income and employment taxes.

• The Best Lawyers in America, Tax Law, Best Lawyers, 2022 – 2025
• Houston Top Lawyer, H Texas magazine, 2008 – 2011, 2014, 2017
• Texas Rising Star, Tax, Thomson Reuters, 2006 – 2007

• Co-author, "Raise Property Tax Exemption in Protest or Lose it," Fulbright ALERT, April 4, 2013
• Co-author, "Litigation of a Tax Exemption Dispute as to One Tax Year Does Not Apply to Subsequent Tax Years," Fulbright Briefing - Tax, November 6, 2012
• Co-author, "Court Reverses Position On Manufacturing Exemption From Texas Sale And Use Tax For Oil And Gas Well Equipment," Fulbright Alert, May 1, 2012
• Author, "Sales and Use Taxes: Texas," Practical Law, April 30, 2012
• Co-author, "Texas Property Tax Cannot Be Applied to Natural Gas in Storage on Interstate Pipeline System," Fulbright ALERT, September 26, 2008
• Co-author, "Texas Tax Update," outline for presentation to Tax Executive Institute, May 21, 2008
• Co-author, "The Margin Tax in Real Estate Transactions," outline for presentation at the 2007 Real Estate Law Conference, June 7, 2007
• Co-author, "Texas Comptroller Announces 'Fresh Start' Amnesty Program," Fulbright ALERT, April 24, 2007
• Co-author, "Developments in Texas Franchise and Sales Tax," outline for presentation to Tax Executive Institute meeting, 2001, 2002 and 2003

• "Where's the Remote - Tax Compliance Issues with Remote Employees", Houston Bar Association - Taxation Section CLE Lunch, Houston, Texas -April 20, 2022.
• "Tips and Traps in Donating Real Property ",  2019 Gulf Coast Regional Gift Planning Conference, Houston, Texas - May 9, 2019.
• "Wayfair: Do you have what you need? (Exempt Organizations)", Managing Legal and Compliance Risks for Nonprofit Organizations, Norton Rose Fulbright US L.L.P and Blazek & Vetterling Seminar, Houston, Texas - March 27, 2019.
• "South Dakota v. Wayfair – Do you have what you need?", Dallas Leadership Academy, Tax Section of the State Bar of Texas, Dallas, Texas - March 22, 2019.
• "South Dakota v. Wayfair – Do you have what you need?", Houston Bar Association - Taxation Section CLE Lunch, Houston, Texas -September 19, 2018.
• "Hot Topics for Tax-Exempt Organizations", Nonprofit Law Institute, United Way Working Connections and Houston Young Lawyers Association, Houston, Texas - November 8, 2017.
• "Excise tax controversies - Challenging an erroneous excise tax assessment", Norton Rose Fulbright webinar, December 12, 2016
• "People's Court - Adventures in Property Tax", 30th Annual Legal Seminar on Ad Valorem Taxation, The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, San Antonio, Texas - September 1, 2016
• "Use of LLCs in the Nonprofit World", Governance of Nonprofit Organizations - 2016, Austin, Texas - August 26, 2016
• "Roundtable – Property Tax Update on Key States - Texas", 2016 ABA/IPT Advanced Property Tax Seminar, New Orleans, Louisiana - March 3, 2016.
• "Fundraising Policies and Procedures", Fall 2015 Nonprofit Workshop, Houston TSCPA Foundation, Houston, Texas - October 7, 2015.
• "Fiduciary Duty: The Dos and Don'ts of Nonprofit Board Service and their Advisers," The University of Texas School of Law 32nd Annual Nonprofit Organizations Institute, Austin, Texas - January 16, 2015.
• "Texas Property Tax Incentives, Exemptions and Property Values - Claiming and Securing Them," Tax Executive Institute/Houston Chapter Tax School, Houston, Texas - May 6, 2014.
• "Texas Tax Issues - Current Developments for Businesses in Texas," Houston Bar Association - Taxation Section CLE Lunch, Houston, Texas - April 16, 2014.
• "Texas Tax Issues - Current Developments for Businesses in Texas," 61st Annual Tulane Tax Institute, New Orleans, Louisiana - November 1, 2012.
• "Texas Tax Update," Fulbright & Jaworski CLE Luncheon, Houston, Texas - May 24, 2012.
• "Current Texas Tax Issues Affecting Business," Tax Executive Institute/New Orleans Chapter State and Local Tax Seminar, New Orleans, Louisiana - April 17, 2012.
• "State and Local Tax Update," Texas Bar CLE: 29th Annual Advanced Tax Law Course, Houston, Texas - August 18, 2011.
• "Current Developments in Sales and Use Tax - Key States' Roundtable - Texas," Institute for Professionals in Taxation 35th Annual Conference, San Antonio, Texas - June 29, 2011.

• State Bar of Texas
  • Section of Taxation
• State Bar of Louisiana
• Houston Bar Association
  • Taxation Section - Council Member (2013 – 2017)
  • Taxation Section - Chair (2016 – 2017)
• Adjunct Professor - University of Houston Law Center, Graduate Tax Law Program
• Graduate of United Way's Project Blueprint, Class XXV (2005)
• A member of F3 Houston.