J. Clark Armitage is an experienced international tax lawyer with a focus on transfer pricing.
Mr. Armitage's core practice is advising multinational corporations from a wide range of industries on transfer pricing matters, including planning, audits and appeals, advance pricing agreements (APAs), and Mutual Agreement Procedures (MAPs). He has a particularly strong background in APAs, having served eight years in the IRS Advance Pricing Agreement Program, including as Deputy Director from 2008 to 2010.
A significant portion of Mr. Armitage’s practice involves helping clients navigate the U.S. federal income tax implications, under section 933 and 937, of bona fide Puerto Rican residency and status under Puerto Rico Act 20, Act 22, Act 60, and Act 73. This work entails residency, transfer pricing, sourcing and structuring advice.
Mr. Armitage also advises clients on other U.S. international and domestic tax issues, such as eligibility for section 1202 (qualified small business stock), sourcing of income and expense, U.S. trade or business issues, S corporation status and implications, partnership tax issues, expatriation, planning for GILTI (now called the “net CFC tested income regime” or NCTI), PFIC planning, and other federal income tax issues.
Highlights
During his tenure with Caplin and Drysdale, Mr. Armitage has worked on numerous APA and MAP cases, IRS audits and Appeals, other tax controversy work and tax planning for corporate and high net worth individual clients.
During his eight years with the IRS APA Program, Mr. Armitage served as team leader, branch chief, and industry coordinator for three separate groups, as well as Deputy Director. As a frontline supervisor, he reviewed APAs developed by other IRS teams and coordinated development of cases in the industry coordination groups for Financial Products, Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices, and Auto and Auto Parts. Additionally, Mr. Armitage had Program-wide responsibility for reviewing cases, coordinating technical issues with other branches of the Office of the Associate Chief Counsel (International), and helping ensure that substantive and procedural issues were addressed consistently across the Program.
Mr. Armitage's contributions to the APA Program were bolstered by a detail as a manager for the U.S. Competent Authority's Office of Tax Treaty where he was responsible for supervising and reviewing Competent Authority analysts with responsibility for Canadian cases. In 2008, he was the APA Program's representative to the IRS Transfer Pricing Task Force, which brought together officials from across the IRS with responsibility for transfer pricing enforcement.
Before joining the APA Program, Mr. Armitage was senior vice president for a venture capital fund management company, and served in London on the U.S. Tax Desk of a major accounting firm. He also has worked with several leading law firms. Mr. Armitage formerly taught “Introduction to Transfer Pricing” as an adjunct professor for the Georgetown University Law Center.
Admissions & Education
Bar & Court Admissions
- District of Columbia
- Maryland
Education
J.D., The George Washington University Law School, 1990
B.A., American University, 1987
Recognitions
Honors & Recognitions
- The Legal 500, Recommended, 2014-2023
- The Legal 500, Top-Tier Firm, Tax - US Taxes - Contentious, 2014-Present
- The Legal 500, International Tax Team of the Year, 2014 and 2015
- Best Lawyers in America, 2019-Present
- Acquisition International, Best for International Transfer Pricing Issues - Washington, D.C., 2015
- ITR World Transfer Pricing, Highly Regarded, 2020
Professional Activities & Affiliations
Other Professional Affiliations
Member, District of Columbia Bar Association
Member, Maryland Bar Association
Member, U.S. Council for International Business
