Board Certified ILS Member Spotlight: Alvaro Acevedo Esq, C.P.A., LLM
ILS Member, Alvaro "Al" Acevedo Jr. Discusses How Board Certification in International Law has Impacted His Practice
Does your practice implicate international law? If so, how?
Absolutelv. 100% of my practice involves international law. I provide comprehensive services to clients looking to set up a business in the US. I provide contract review, drafting, and negotiating. Most of my practice encompasses providing international tax advice. This means providing advice on the tax consequences of transactions.
This also means providing structures to optimize such tax consequences via tax planning. Finally, I provide litigation representation in the US tax court and the federal court system typically against the IRS or the US Department of Justice whenever international tax controversies arise.
I also provide international tax services to US persons with foreign exposure. This means advising and representing Americans when they have foreign holdings to comply with the US tax code. In case the client is already undergoing an investigation, an assessment, or is exposed to criminal charges, I represent the client as well.
How long have you been board-certified in international law?
I have been board-certified in International Law since 2023 and in Tax Law since 2021.
How has your international law board certification impacted your practice?
The international law certification was (and is) the culmination of my formation as an attorney. It has exposed me to the broadest clientele I have been exposed to since I started practicing in 2015. I have reached the point where I have become very selective as to which clients to accept because the demand for my services increased exponentially. Moreover, as a Miami-based attorney, it is difficult for a business transaction not to have some type of international law exposure. This makes the knowledge of an international counsel not only valuable but necessary, from the planning stages to the controversial matters. This comes from someone who was already board-certified in tax (and held both LLM and CPA licenses) and what set him apart from the rest was the international certification. I did not expect such a positive impact to the degree I have had it so far.
What recommendations would you make to ILS Members considering applying for board certification?
Do not doubt for a second that getting a certification in international law will be one of the best decisions that you could make as an attorney. I can't think of many other things that will bring you to the level of an attorney with an international law certificate. It is not easy, and it should not be. This is why there are so few of us and why the certification is so valuable. I am so thrilled with the entire experience that for the first time since I became an attorney, I decided to serve on a certification committee because I want to help other attorneys reach the point I have reached.