In This Issue:

October 1999 -- Vol. 28, No. 2

Volunteer Tax Program Is ‘Vital’ to Communities

During the hectic years of law school, we learn what’s vital to succeed. It’s vital that we study. It’s vital that we learn the law. It’s vital that we succeed. But there’s another “vital” we shouldn’t forget, one that’s for the good of the profession and society as a whole: It’s vital that as we pursue our law degrees, we don’t forget one of the reasons we all wanted to become lawyers—to help people.

The Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program offers free help from volunteers to individuals who can’t prepare their own income tax forms or pay for professional assistance. The program was started by the IRS in the 1970s and later adopted by the Law Student Division as one of its core initiatives.

This year’s theme for the program is: “It’s VITAL” to become involved with VITA. The program shows we are willing to give back to our communities by helping people less fortunate than ourselves.

The time commitment involved is only about 10 hours (four for training, two for testing, and four for volunteering). By participating in the program, students can, for instance, assure a severely disabled person that he owes no taxes, let a blind person know that the IRS will give her extra exemptions, or let a low-income family of four know that the IRS will give it up to $3,700 tax free. These are just some of the rewarding experiences law students encountered last year while involved in VITA.

Law students prepare for the program in January, when course materials are made available through their local American Bar Association chapters. Formal training, which includes the basics of the tax code, filling out the 1040A and 1040EZ forms, and electronic filing, concludes with a simple exam shortly before the VITA program kicks off in early March.

When the Law Student Division first adopted this program several years ago, only 10 percent of all accredited law schools participated. Last year, more than 150 law schools and 600 volunteers were involved.

The VITA experience can be extremely rewarding. It provides what for some students is the first opportunity to interview a client face to face and to make decisions about the best way to save on taxes. I strongly encourage every law student to get involved in this worthwhile program. Although I hope that every law school will have a VITA site on its campus, individuals interested in the program can be linked with other VITA sites in their communities—or they can start a new program at their campus.

For additional information about VITA, check out the Division web site at www.abanet. org/lsd/vita.html, contact your ABA representative, or phone me at 1-800-FON-VITA. I look forward to a successful and VITAL year! •

Cynthia L. Pearson, a second-year student at Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, is the 1999-2000 national director of the Law Student Division’s VITA program.