Bradley Arant Boult Cummings Congratulates Bruce Ely On Receiving Prestigious Paul H. Frankel Award from NYU

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that Birmingham partner Bruce P. Ely is the 2013 and first recipient of the Paul H. Frankel Award for Outstanding Achievement in State and Local Taxation from the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies. This is considered one of the most prestigious awards given in the United States to an attorney practicing in the area of state and local tax.

Mr. Ely received the award Dec. 12 during a ceremony at the school’s 32nd annual Institute on State and Local Taxation in New York City. The award, which recognizes “unparalleled contributions in all areas of state and local taxation”, is named after well-known state and local tax attorney and founding chairman of the Tax Institute, Paul H. Frankel, in honor of his 32 years of commitment to the Institute.

“We congratulate Bruce on receiving this unparalleled and much deserved recognition,” said Firm Chairman Beau Grenier. “This distinction honors Bruce’s distinguished career, during which he has not only served as a dedicated advocate to his clients, but also given back immeasurably to the legal profession, particularly in the area of state and local taxation.”

Mr. Ely focuses his practice in three concentric areas: representing taxpayers before federal, Alabama and local administrative and judicial forums; advising companies on choosing the proper form of legal entity through which to conduct business in the Southeast and potential tax incentives; and advising companies and various trade and professional organizations regarding state and local tax legislative matters. Bruce chairs the firm’s State and Local Tax (SALT) Practice Team, which represents taxpayers before the Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi and District of Columbia Departments of Revenue, as well as local government taxing authorities and the state and federal courts. He also devotes a substantial amount of time to teaching and writing on SALT-related topics.

Mr. Ely’s 32 years of experience includes serving as tax and incentives adviser to the state recruiting teams that induced JVC America, Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai to locate their first U.S. manufacturing plants in Alabama. As part of his governmental affairs practice, Mr. Ely has co-authored a number of landmark pieces of tax legislation in Alabama. In addition, he has served as counsel to several state tax reform, economic development and constitutional reform commissions.

Bruce holds a J.D., with honors, from the University of Alabama School of Law and an LL.M. in Taxation from the New York University School of Law. He also has B.S. in Accounting, cum laude, from the University of Alabama.