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Clintons' Tax Man Is a Hogan & Hartson Partner
Howard Topaz advises corporations, partnerships and wealthy people like the Clintons
The American Lawyer
April 08, 2008
A lawyer at Hogan & Hartson has been Bill and Hillary Clinton's go-to guy for tax advice since 2004, according to documents released Friday by Hillary Clinton's campaign.
New York-based tax partner Howard Topaz has had the job of preparing the couple's annual tax returns for the last four tax cycles, the filings show. The Clintons' tax returns for 2000-07 show combined earnings of $109 million, on which they paid $33 million in taxes.
Hogan & Hartson referred calls to Hillary Clinton's campaign spokespeople. An e-mail and call to the senator's campaign HQ in Virginia were not immediately returned.
Topaz, 53, has a broad tax practice, according to Hogan's Web site. His clients include corporations, partnerships and wealthy people like the Clintons. He also regularly advises corporations on M&A and executive compensation.
Before Topaz got the gig, the Clintons used accounting firm Hariton, Mancuso & Jones of Rockville, Md. According to an archived 1995 White House press conference, the Clintons' lawyers at Williams & Connolly originally retained Hariton Mancuso.
Hogan & Hartson has been among Sen. Clinton's biggest financial supporters in the legal industry. Firm lawyers and staff have donated nearly $123,400 to her campaign so far, according to campaign contribution data from the Center for Responsive Politics. Christine Varney, a partner in Hogan's Washington, D.C., office, served as chief counsel to the Clinton-Gore Campaign in 1992.
Sen. Barack Obama, in contrast, has pulled in $100,080 from the firm. Sen. John McCain has received only $19,610 from Hogan employees.
