Publication Type
Conference Paper
Publication Date
12-2014
Abstract
We examine whether the inclusion of general counsel in top management is associated with a firm’s tax avoidance. We find that firms with general counsel as part of the top management team have lower GAAP effective tax rate, more uncertain tax positions, a higher likelihood of engaging in tax shelter activities, and more tax haven countries in which the firm reports a significant subsidiary, relative to firms without a general counsel in top management. In addition, we find that among firms with general counsel in top management, tax avoidance is greater when (1) the general counsel has tax-related expertise, (2) the firm hires an external auditor with tax expertise or purchases more tax services from its external auditor, and (3) the CEO has more power over the general counsel.
Keywords
Top management composition, general counsel, tax avoidance
Discipline
Accounting | Corporate Finance | Taxation
Research Areas
Corporate Reporting and Disclosure
Publication
American Accounting Association Annual Meeting 2014, August, Houston TX; European Financial Management Association Conference 2014, June 25-28, Rome; World Finance Conference 2014, December 12-13, Singapore
First Page
1
Last Page
63
City or Country
Singapore
Citation
GOH, Beng Wee; LEE, Jimmy; and NG, Jeffrey.
The Inclusion of General Counsel in Top Management and Tax Avoidance. (2014). American Accounting Association Annual Meeting 2014, August, Houston TX; European Financial Management Association Conference 2014, June 25-28, Rome; World Finance Conference 2014, December 12-13, Singapore. 1-63.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soa_research/1338
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Included in
Accounting Commons, Corporate Finance Commons, Taxation Commons