Gornto, Neil

Roger Ritt is a current member and former vice chairman of the Tax Practice Group. He joined the firm in 1976. Mr. Ritt concentrates his practice on taxable and tax-free mergers and acquisitions, spin-offs, federal and state tax controversies, executive compensation and § 280G golden parachutes, and bankruptcies and workouts.

Practice

Mr. Ritt has served as tax counsel to a number of clients in merger and acquisition and spin-off transactions, including Dean Foods in its spin-off of TreeHouse, Blockbuster's Special Committee in the spin-off of Blockbuster by Viacom, Akamai, Avid, BJ's Wholesale Club, John Hancock, Redhat, Sepracor, Teradyne and Wright Express.

Mr. Ritt also has represented clients in several significant bankruptcy cases. He acted as tax counsel to Harold Brown in the largest individual bankruptcy case in New England, to the debtors in the Arch Wireless, Mattress Discounters, and KB Toys Chapter 11 proceedings, and to the creditors committees in the Wang and the EUA Power Chapter 11 proceedings.

In the controversy area, Mr. Ritt has successfully represented many clients at the US Tax Court, IRS appeals, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board and the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. He represented the principal owners of the Boston Celtics in a tax dispute arising in connection with its public offering, obtaining multi-million dollar judgments in Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board proceedings that were affirmed by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.

Professional Activities

Mr. Ritt is chair of the Corporate Tax Committee of the American Bar Association's Section on Taxation, and is a fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel.

From 1979 to 1992, Mr. Ritt taught "Corporate Income Taxation" and "Advanced Partnership Taxation" as an adjunct professor of law in the graduate tax program at Boston University School of Law. He is a frequent lecturer at tax programs throughout the country, including those sponsored by ALI-ABA , the American Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association, the California Tax Bar, the Federal Tax Institute of New England, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, the New York University Institute on Federal Taxation, the Texas Federal Tax Institute and the World Trade Institute.

Honors and Awards

• Named by Best Lawyers as Boston Tax Lawyer of the Year in 2010
• Selected as one of Lawdragon magazine's "Top 500 Leading Dealmakers" for 2007
• Recognized in the PLC Cross-border Tax on Corporate Transactions Handbook for 2006/07 as a "highly regarded corporate and bankruptcy tax expert...[with] significant multi-level tax controversy experience"
• Named a "New England Super Lawyer" (formerly "Massachusetts Super Lawyer") in the November 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 issues of Boston Magazine. Selected as a "Top 100 Massachusetts Super Lawyer" in 2004.
• Also featured in The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Who's Who in America, Who's Who in the World, Who's Who in American Law, Who's Who in Finance and Industry, and Who's Who in the East