Sheri A. Dillon focuses her practice on federal tax controversy matters, guiding clients through Internal Revenue Service (IRS) examinations and appeals, the administrative claims process, and litigation. Sheri also counsels clients on a variety of business and tax-planning matters, with a particular focus on high-net-worth individuals, partnership transactions, and closely held businesses.
Sheri has tax litigation experience and has appeared before the US Tax Court, US district and appellate courts, and the US Court of Federal Claims. She represents corporate taxpayers, Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) and Bipartisan Budget Act partnerships, partners, tax-exempt organizations, and global high-wealth taxpayers in the financial services, private equity, hedge fund, real estate, energy, manufacturing, and consumer products industries.
Specifically, Sheri’s recent experience includes challenges that involve economic substance, substance-over-form, and bona fide partnership issues; taxation of partnerships and partners; taxation of financial products; income tax accounting issues; cancellation of indebtedness income; employment tax issues; debt-equity classification; charitable contribution deductions; tax-exempt organizations, tax credits; and valuation. Sheri has also represented taxpayers and investors involved in promoter audit investigations.
Sheri is an active speaker who regularly presents on current tax issues at various professional organizations, including the American Bar Association Section of Taxation, Texas Federal Tax Institute, PLI, NYU Institute on Federal Taxation, Tax Executives Institute, Federal Bar Association, and DC Bar Section of Taxation. She previously taught partnership taxation at Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law and helped launch the University of the District of Columbia, David A. Clarke School of Law’s Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic, a program dedicated to providing legal services to low-income taxpayers. Sheri currently serves as a director and president of the Washington, DC Center for Public Interest Tax Law, whose mission is to provide pro bono tax services to the greater DC community.
Recognized, Janet Spragens Pro Bono Award, ABA Section of Taxation (2023)
Recommended, Tax: US taxes: contentious, The Legal 500 US (2023, 2024)
Ranked, Tax, District of Columbia, Chambers USA (2022–2024)
Ranked, Tax: Controversy, Nationwide, Chambers USA (2022–2024)
Ranked, Chambers USA (2006–2016)
Listed, The Best Lawyers in America, Tax Law, Washington, DC (2018–2025)
Listed, The Best Lawyers in America, Litigation and Controversy - Tax, Washington, DC (2024, 2025)
Member, Practice Group of the Year, Tax, Law360 (2017)
Director and President, Washington DC Center for Public Interest Tax Law
Member, J. Edgar Murdock Inn of Court
Fellow, American College of Tax Counsel
Retired Vice Chair for Pro Bono and Outreach, ABA Section of Taxation
Retired Council Director, ABA Section of Taxation
Retired Chair, Administrative Practice Committee, ABA Section of Taxation