In 2003, Diara M. Holmes joined the Exempt Organizations Group of Caplin & Drysdale. She became a member of the firm in 2007.
Ms. Holmes counsels nonprofit organizations - including large public charities, colleges and universities, U.S. affiliates of foreign charities, megachurches and other religious organizations, and trade associations - on a broad range of tax and corporate governance issues.
Services
Clients benefit from Ms. Holmes' expertise and practical guidance on both tax planning and tax controversy matters. She frequently represents organizations before the IRS in private letter ruling requests and complex audits involving an array of issues, such as lobbying, alleged campaign intervention, executive compensation, UBIT, private foundation excise taxes, and structuring transactions. She has also advised numerous organizations through the process of reinstating their exempt status following automatic revocation.
Professional Activities
- Ms. Holmes is an active member of the ABA Tax Section's Committee on Exempt Organizations, and has served as Co-Chair of the Subcommittee on Audits and Appeals since 2008.
- She is also actively involved with the Washington Metropolitan Area Corporate Counsel Association's (WMACCA) Nonprofits & Associations Forum, which Caplin & Drysdale sponsors.
- Ms. Holmes is a frequent speaker at national professional conferences on exempt organizations. For example:
- MCLE Seminar, Nonprofit Law Conference (2013)
- WMACCA's Corporate Governance Conference (2012)
- ABA Tax Section Mid-Year Conference Panel on IRS Enforcement (2012)
- WMACCA NonProfits and Associations Forum: EO Year in Review - (2012)
- ABA Tax Section's Forum on College and University Audits (2010)
- National Association of College and University Attorneys Annual Conference (2010-2013)
- National Association of College and University Business Officers Tax Forum (2009, 2010, 2011)
- Georgetown University Law School's CLE Program, Representing and Managing Tax-Exempt Organizations (2008)
- American Law Institute-American Bar Association Course on Tax-Exempt Charitable Organizations (2003, 2005, 2007)