Frequent Author and Quote Source:  National Validation 

2025 Thought-Leadership UPDATE:  (1) On March 21, 2025, Tax Notes Federal published Tom’s ground-breaking, 6,283-word article addressing whether a local rule of a federal district court that requires a lawyer,  even one who is hyper-qualified, to have, for a regular admission to the bar of the federal district court, an enrolled membership in good standing with the state bar of the state where the federal court sits.   Sykes, “Are Most District Court Rules of Admission Invalid?,” 186 Tax Notes Federal 2217 (March 24, 2025).  Tom, currently litigating this issue of first impression before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Case No. 24-6477), believes that existing Supreme Court authority and 28 U.S.C. section 1654 require a holding that local rules with this structure violate Art. III and Amend. VI of the U.S. Constitution.  These constitutional provisions appear to require federal admissions requirements to be based upon final adjudications by an Art. III federal court exercising Art. III powers, not upon final adjudications of a state bar applying state substantive and procedural standards.  In the Ninth Circuit, no Answering Brief opposing Tom’s arguments was timely filed by either the district court or by the U.S. Department of Justice.  Tom’s Ninth Circuit brief was posted as a Comment to the website of the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Judicial Conference of the United States, which is considering whether local rules of the type to which Tom has objected should be amended.   (See https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/records-rules-committees/suggestions/thomas-sykes-25-cv-b.)  In addition, Tom’s recent article on the subject, published at 186 Tax Notes Federal 2217 (Issue 12 (first page), March 24, 2025) — see below — also has been posted by the Standing Committee on the Rules Suggestions page of the U.S. Courts website with tracking numbers 25-BK-G, 25-CR-F, and 25-CV-I, respectively.  (2) In the spring of 2025, Tom will speak at tax symposium where he will address the Supreme Court’s recent Loper Bright decision and its impact on the validity of Treasury Regulations challenged in federal tax disputes.

2024 Thought-Leadership RECAP:  In 2024, Tom continued to make uncommon contributions to the intellectual life of the federal tax bar.  His article on Loper Bright (see below) appeared on July 15, 2024, in Tax Notes Federal and Tax Notes International.  Tax Notes is the world’s premier publication with articles of current interest to tax practitioners.  His 5,000-word article, addressing a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, was featured on the cover of Tax Notes Federal and later featured on Tax Notes‘ page on X (formerly Twitter).  Shortly before that article appeared, Sykes appeared on a panel at the Federal Bar Association’s 39th Annual Insurance Tax Seminar, in Washington, D.C., to discuss the Supreme Court’s anticipated decision.  In December, 2024, Tom was invited to speak about Loper Bright at a tax symposium in 2025.   Loper Bright is the most important case for federal tax administration to come out of the U.S. Supreme Court in four decades, and Tom has been privileged to be at the forefront of the professional discussion.  Tom is grateful for the two speaking engagements and for Tax Notes‘ elevation of his article.

• Tom has been quoted or mentioned by name in The New York Times, The Baltimore Sun, Tax Notes Federal, Tax Notes International, Tax Notes Global, Tax Notes Today, BNA Daily Tax Report, Tax Law360, International Herald Tribune, The Kansas City Star, Financial Advisor Magazine, Chicago Lawyer, Bloomberg.com, Crain’s Health Pulse, Forbes.com, and CNNMoney.com.  Tom has published peer-reviewed litigation and tax articles across four decades (1980s, and 2000s through 2020s).  Tax Notes, his most frequent venue, is the world’s leading tax publication.
• Author, “Are Most Federal District Court Admissions Rules Invalid,” 186 Tax Notes Federal 2217 (March 24, 2025).  Also posted by Tax Analysts on X (formerly Twitter).  
• Author, “Loper Bright:  A Tax Litigator’s Quick Take,” 184 Tax Notes Federal 451 (July 15, 2024) (cover story) and posted by Tax Analysts on X (formerly Twitter), July 20, 2024; and 115 Tax Notes International 309 (July 15, 2024).  The article can be downloaded from Tax Notes page at the X  website, having been designated by Tax Notes as a Special Report.  Tom’s article was quoted and cited extensively in a white paper prepared by Bessemer Trust.  (Loper Bright itself may be found at 144 S. Ct. 2244 (2024).)
• Author, “Are Needed Adjustments to Chevron Deference Coming?,” 181 Tax Notes Federal 1569 (Nov. 27, 2023), and Tax Notes Global (Nov. 29, 2023).  Posted by Tax Notes on X, formerly Twitter (Dec. 2, 2023).  
• Author,  “New FinCEN Reporting Will Challenge Small Companies,” 174 Tax Notes Federal 149 (Jan. 10, 2022) and in Tax Notes State, Vol. 103, p. 149 (Jan. 10, 2022) (3,200-word article addressing new FinCEN filing obligations imposed by 2021’s Corporate Transparency Act).  First article ever on impact of CTA upon the nation’s 30 million small businesses.  Copy available upon request.
• Author, “The ‘Corporation’ Exception to Carried Interest:  A Litigator’s View,” 169 Tax Notes Federal 769 (Nov. 2, 2020) (5,200-word article addressing Code section 1061(c)(4)(A)).  Copy available upon request.  In the wake of heavy lobbying by hedge funds and private equity, neither the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (November 2021) nor the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (August 2022) “fixed” the taxpayer-helpful “error” in section 1061(c)(4)(A), despite advanced legislative proposals 
• Quoted in Law360’s article on the Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Charleston Area Medical Center, which addresses Notice 2018-18 (respecting the TCJA’s cutback to the historically favorable treatment for Carried Interest)
• Quoted in Bloomberg/BNA’s article on the Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Charleston Area Medical Center, which addresses Notice 2018-18 (respecting the TCJA’s cutback to the historically favorable treatment for Carried Interest)
• Views as to the recent Charleston Area Medical Center decision, and its implications for the validity of regulations promised by IRS Notice 2018-18, addressed by Tax Analysts Contributing Editor Ben Willis’ LinkedIn blog
• Quoted in Law360, “Tax Docs Irrelevant to Interest Row, US Tells 10th Cir.” Jan. 9, 2019 (pertaining to new Code section 1061(c)(4)(A))
• Quoted in Bloomberg Law’s article, “IRS Clarification of Carried Interest May Face Legal Challenge,” March 22, 2018 (pertaining to new Code section 1061(c)(4)(A))
• Quoted in Tax Law360 on recent decision requiring the filing of administrative claims before suing to recover additional statutory interest, Oct. 22, 2016
• Author, “Litigation Finance for Tax Cases:  A Win-Win for Taxpayers and Counsel,” 153 Tax Notes 713 (Oct. 31, 2016).
• Author, “10 Situations When a CPA Should Call ‘Timeout,’” Journal of Accountancy, April/May 2015.  Copy available upon request.  
• Author, “Additional Interest on FICA-Tax Refunds Made to Teaching Hospitals: Action Required,” hfma.org, October 2014
• Quoted in a profile of his practice published in Winter 2013 by the alumni magazine of Ohio State’s College of Law (ahead of the curve, Tom criticized giving Chevron deference to regulations)
• Author, “Ruling Favors Employer Tax Refunds on Layoffs,” CFO magazine, September 25, 2012
• Co-Author, “Could You Be Charged with A Crime for Failures by Prior Management to Pay Over Employment Taxes to the IRS?,” Orange County (CA) Business Journal, November 21, 2011
• Author, “De-Turbocharging Chevron and Mayo:  What Arguments Survive Mayo to Place a Check on Federal Regulatory Overreach?,”  Lexis-Nexis, April 27, 2011
• Author, “The Mayo Decision’s Problematic Tax Analysis,” BNA Daily Tax Report, March 17, 2011
• Author, “Time for Teaching Hospitals to Conduct a Strategic Review of Large-Dollar Claims Seeking a Refund of Medical-Resident FICA Taxes Paid Under the 2005 Regulation,” BNA’s Health Law Reporter, August 19, 2010
• Author, “Update on Next Steps for Teaching Hospitals to Recover FICA Tax Paid On Stipends Paid to Medical Residents,” Health Lawyers Weekly, June 18, 2010
• Author, “Recovering FICA Tax Paid on Resident Stipends: 2010 Update,” hfm Magazine, April 1, 2010
• Co-Author, “IRS Concedes That Medical Resident Stipends Are Not Subject to FICA Taxes for Quarters Before April 1, 2005: Now What?,” Health Lawyers Weekly, March 5, 2010
• Co-Author, “Navigating Voluntary Disclosure in the Wake of the Government’s Assault on Undisclosed Foreign Accounts,” The Criminal Litigation Newsletter, American Bar Association, Spring 2009
• Author, “Recovering FICA Tax Paid on Resident Stipends: Time for a Strategic Review,” hfm Magazine, January 2009
• Co-Author, “Deductibility of Bribes, Kickbacks, Illegal Payments, Fines, and Penalties,” Tax Management Portfolio 524 (BNA/Bloomberg treatise), 2007
• Co-Author of article about the intersection of tax and patent law, discussed in the New York Times by columnist Floyd Norris, October 20, 2006.
• Co-Author, “Whose Tax Law Is It?,” Legal Times, October 16, 2006
• Co-Author, “To Practice Tax Law, You Need A Patent License,” IP Law360, September 11, 2006
• Co-Author, “Chapter 3850: Examinations: Audits, Assessments, Appeals,” BNA/Bloomberg’s Tax Practice Series, 2005
• Co-Author, Supplement to major WG&L tax treatise regarding tax shelters (sub silentio).
• Author, “The Invalidity of Reg. § 1.903-1(a) — and a Tax-Recovery Strategy Suggested by the Analysis,” Journal of Taxation of Global Transactions, Winter 2004
• Author, “The Growing Controversy Over Federal Excise Tax on Long-Distance Calls,” The Tax Executive, May-June 2003
• Author, “The Invalidity of the ‘For Everyone or No One’ Rule and a Tax-Recovery Strategy Suggested by the Analysis,” Tax Notes, February 1, 2003
• Author, “Powerful New Arguments Against the Duplicated-Loss Provisions of the LDR,” Tax Notes, September 17, 2001
• Author, Student Note, “Chart v. General Motors: Did It Chart the Way for Admission of Evidence of Subsequent Remedial Measures in Product Liability Actions?,” 41 Ohio St. L. J. 211 (1980) (student-authored article in this Big Ten university’s flagship law review).  Cited in ten other law reviews and by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.  

Copyright Notice: All articles, including linked PDFs, are © by the author. All rights reserved.

Notable Speaking Engagements:  National Validation 

Across five different decades, Tom has been a speaker or panelist at tax events on the East Coast and in the South, in Chicago, and in the West, including events hosted by federal courts, by the U.S. Department of Justice, by the American Bar Association, by the Federal Bar Association, by two Chicago law schools, by international and NYC-based accounting firms, and by the National Association of State Bar Tax Sections, as follows:

• Panelist, “Increased Scrutiny of Tax Professionals,” The John Marshall Law School Fourth Annual Institute on the Ethics of Tax Law Practice, Chicago, May 26, 2011
• Speaker, “The IRS’s Revised Position on Employer-Provided and Supported Cell Phones,” The John Marshall Law School’s Tax Law Lunch and Learn Series, Chicago, April 18, 2012
• Panelist, “Litigation of Actions under Section 7408 and Related Sections, Such as Sections 7407 and 7402,” ABA Section of Taxation and Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law, Trust and Estate Division’s 2012 Joint Fall CLE Meeting, Boston, MA, September 14, 2012
• Speaker, “Update on ‘Third Wave’ Medical-Resident FICA Litigation,” Webinar held on November 21, 2013
• Speaker, “Bringing Suit to Recover Additional Interest on FICA Refunds Previously Received,” Webinar held on April 23, 2015
• Speaker, “New Opportunities for Challenging Dubious Treasury Regulations,” Webcast Sponsored by the Tax Committee of the ABA’s Business Law Section, March 8, 2016 (with Prof. Andy Grewal of the U. of Iowa College of Law)
• Panelist, “Proposed Carried Interest Regulations:  Are You Ready?,” November 18, 2020 (sponsored by NYC’s Anchin, Block & Anchin LLP; NJ’s SS&C Technologies, Inc.; and NYC’s Seward & Kissel LLP)
• Panelist, “Get Ready for Beneficial Ownership Reporting to FinCEN,” National Association of State Bar Tax Sections,  Annual Conference, November 11-12, 2022, Austin, Texas (addressing new FinCEN regulations implementing 2021’s Corporate Transparency Act, requiring reporting of beneficial ownership of certain entities)
• Panelist, “Key Developments in Tax Controversy,” 39th Annual Insurance Tax Seminar, Federal Bar Association, May 30-31, 2024, Washington, DC (addressing the imminent Supreme Court opinion in Loper Bright/Relentless).
• Speaker, Tax Symposium, Spring 2025.

• Instructor, Attorney General’s Advocacy Institute, Washington, DC, 1988
• Panelist and author of materials on prerequisites to tax-refund jurisdiction in the Court of Federal Claims.  Twentieth Annual Tax Law Conference of the Federal Bar Association, Washington, DC, March 1996
• Panelist on the proposed overhaul of Rule 26(a) of the Rules of the Court of Federal Claims.  Tenth Annual Judicial Conference of the Court of Federal Claims, Kingsmill, Virginia, November 1997
• Speaker, “Issues with IRC § 6694: Understatement of Taxpayer’s Liability by Tax Return Preparer,” The John Marshall Law School Inaugural Institute on the Ethics of Tax Law Practice, Chicago, Illinois, April 29, 2008
• Speaker, “Recovering Refunds of FICA Tax Paid on Stipends Paid to Medical Residents,” Webinar, May 6, 2009
• Speaker, “Myriad Judgment Calls: Assisting Clients Who Have Failed to File Reports of Foreign Financial Accounts,” The John Marshall Law School Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits’ Second Annual Institute on the Ethics of Tax Law Practice, Chicago, Illinois, May 15, 2009
• Speaker, “The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts: Tough New Requirements,” Strafford CLE and CPE Webinar, November 5, 2009
• Panelist, “International Compliance Issues,” TEI’s International Tax Forum, Chicago, December 3, 2009
• Panelist, “Employment Tax Update,” 19th Annual Ernst and Young LLP Health Sciences Tax Conference, Las Vegas, NV, December 8, 2009
• Panelist, “Focus on Tax Controversy: Managing Risk in a Hostile Environment,” Chicago, March 16, 2010
• Panelist, “Medical Resident FICA and Other Employment Tax Issues,” Ernst and Young LLP, Chicago, March 24, 2010
• Panelist, 29th Annual Federal Tax Institute, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Chicago, April 29, 2010
• Panelist, “Shrinking Privileges, Expanding Responsibilities,” The John Marshall Law School Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits’ Third Annual Institute on the Ethics of Tax Law Practice, Chicago, May 25, 2010
• Speaker, “FICA Tax on Severance Pay: Status of the Controversy Possible Next Steps,” Ernst and Young LLP, Chicago, July 23, 2010
• Speaker, “A Look Back at the IRS’s Billion-Dollar Concession of Litigation over the ‘First Bucket’ of Medical-Resident FICA Claims: A View from the Front Lines,” The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, September 15, 2010
• Panelist, “Medical Resident FICA,” National Association of College and University Business Officers’ Tax Forum, New Orleans, LA, November 4, 2010