Ms. Divola is leader of the firm's San Francisco tax practice. She is experienced in federal income tax planning for business and financial transactions. Her practice focuses on corporate and partnership taxation with particular emphasis on domestic and international mergers, acquisitions, and spinoffs; integration transactions and other corporate reorganizations; partnerships and joint ventures; private equity investments; and other complex transactions. She has worked extensively with a variety of industries including telecommunications, financial services, technology and technical services, media, energy, alternative energy, life sciences, real estate and construction. Ms. Divola also represents clients in ruling and tax controversy matters.

Ms. Divola has served as outside tax counsel for Vodafone Group Plc and its predecessor, AirTouch Communications in connection with numerous domestic and international acquisitions and equity investments, including the formation of the $70 billion Verizon Wireless joint venture. She has recently served as outside tax counsel for Electronic Arts Inc. in connection with a variety of tax matters, including its acquisitions of VG Holdings, Inc., JAMDAT Mobile, Inc. and Digital Illusions, C.E. Other recent transactions include representation of a prominent international financial institution in connection with a variety of acquisitions, dispositions and offerings; SAIC in connection with its IPO; AT&T in connection with a number of acquisitions and joint ventures; and numerous private equity funds in connection with their acquisitions and dispositions of portfolio companies.

Ms. Divola is chair of the Corporate Tax Committee of the ABA Section of Taxation. She is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Taxation Section of the California State Bar Association, where she is former chair of the Corporate Tax/Corporate Tax Counsel Committee and former chair of the Passthroughs and Real Estate Tax Committee. She is also former president of the San Francisco Tax Club.

Ms. Divola is listed as a leading tax attorney in several publications, including Chambers USA – America’s Leading Business Lawyers; International Who’s Who of Corporate Tax Lawyers, International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, International Tax Review; Global Counsel 3000, PLC Which Lawyer?, and Law & Politics Media, Inc.

Ms. Divola serves on the editorial board of the Practical Tax Lawyer and serves as co-chair of the ALI-ABA Course of Study on Corporate Taxation. She has been an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of San Francisco School of Law. She frequently lectures on transactional tax issues before various professional groups, including the American Bar Association Section of Taxation, Practising Law Institute, NYU Federal Tax Institute, Tax Executives Institute, California Bar Association (Tax Section), CPA National Law Forum, Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants Advanced Tax Institute, Mid-America Tax Conference, Texas Tax Institute, the USC Tax Insititute and the Institute on Tax Aspects of Mergers and Acquisitions. Articles by Ms. Divola on corporate and partnership tax matters have been published by Journal of Corporate Taxation, Practising Law Institute, NYU Institute on Federal Taxation, USC Major Tax Planning and Tax Analysts.

Education

J.D., University of San Francisco School of Law, 1986
summa cum laude, 1st in class

B.A., University of California, Santa Barbara, 1980

Admissions

State of California

Affiliations

American Bar Association (Tax Section), Chair, Corporate Tax Committee

California State Bar Association (Tax Section): Member, Executive Committee; Past-Chair, Corporate Tax/Corporate Tax Counsel Committee; Past Chair, Passthroughs and Real Estate Tax Committee

San Francisco Tax Club, Past President

American College of Tax Counsel, Fellow

American Bar Foundation, Fellow

ALI-ABA Course of Study on Corporate Taxation, Co-Chair

Practical Tax Lawyer, Editorial Board, Member

The BASIC Fund, Board Member

Firm Publications

New Rules Governing Written Tax Advice, 29-Jun-2005

Tax Aspects of Mergers & Acquisitions: "Spin-Offs - Section 355(e)" - PowerPoint Presentation, 05-May-2005

Disposition of Overleveraged Real Estate: Thinking Outside the Box, 16-Nov-2004

Current Corporate Developments, 06-Nov-2004

Recent Corporate Tax Developments, 14-Oct-2004

Boot Distributions in Reorganizations, 02-Oct-2004

Exit Strategies, 04-Nov-2003