A Roslyn Heights lawyer has been selected to serve on Law 360’s Tax Editorial Advisory Board.
Steven Horowitz, a partner at Horowitz and Rubenstein, said he was surprised he got the appointment to the Lexis Nexis-owned company.
“I’m the only person on the board who isn’t from a major or international law firm,” Horowitz said. “Either that says something about me or they got the decision wrong.”
Horowitz graduated Hofstra University in 1981 with a degree in economics and a law degree in 1984.
He said he started practicing law with specialization in tax and accounting immediately after graduating.
“I’ve been doing this for so long. I’m like a neck tie, I’m back in style,” he said.
Horowitz said he took interest in legal accounting and taxes when he was young.
He said he was exposed to accounting and taxes working for his father when he was in high school.
“I’ve been around accountants all my life. My own father was an accountant and I worked for him when I was in high school,” Horowitz said.
He said he practiced accounting and tax law with Touche Ross & Co. for a few years before returning to Hofstra where he earned a business degree in accounting in 1989.
Horowitz said he worked at Touche Ross during the day and took classes at night at Hofstra.
After graduating, he was hired by Symbol Technology to serve as the inhouse tax director for about two and half years before starting his own law firm.
Horowitz left Moritz Hock in 2011, a firm which he was a partner, to cofound Horowitz and Rubenstein LLC, a five attorney law firm in Roslyn.
He said he chose to be a lawyer for two reasons — he has been around lawyers all his life and his photographic memory.
“I can remember details that other attorneys might overlook or not remember,” he said.
One case in particular Horowitz said he remembers was when he was able to eliminate the mortality planning risk for a client.
He calls it the ‘Remainder Interest Installment Sale’ which he said a judge later cited in the ruling for another case.
In college, Horowitz said he wrote a thesis on Estates and Gift Tax or Family Wealth transfer plan and believes that it is the ultimate hallmark of financial planning.
“My goal is to design ways to design ways to save people as much money as possible, legally,” he said, laughing.
Law 360 is a news service published by Lexis Nexis targeting the legal community primarily towards lawyers.
Horowitz’s responsibilities will include reviewing different legal copies, materials and journals submitted for publication.
He said he will also be advising the editorial board articles they decide to publish that is of interest to the community.
“It involves a job that involves a lot keeping current and that is what I like to do,” Horowitz said.
His appointment is a one-year term and stresses that he isn’t leaving his day job at Horowitz and Rubenstein.
