Talk:Edward McCaffery

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An alternative skeleton

Here's how I refactored this article for my own personal wiki.

Edward McCaffery (born c. 1959) is a tax law professor at USC Law School and a visiting professor of Law and Economics at Caltech.

  • summa cum laude in something — Yale University
  • J.D. magna cum laude — Harvard Law School
  • master's degree in economics — USC

He is an internationally recognized expert in tax law.

McCaffery studies:

  • tax policy
  • tax structures
  • public finance theory
    • including behavioral public finance
  • property law and theory
  • intellectual property
  • law and economics

Ventures

  • clerk to Chief Justice Robert N. Wilentz — New Jersey Supreme Court
  • attorney with Titchell, Maltzman, Mark, Bass, Ohleyer & Mishel
  • USC Law faculty — from 1989
  • visiting professor of law and economics at Caltech — from 1994
  • chaired the USC Institute on Federal Taxation — from 1997
  • founded the USC–Caltech Center for the Study of Law and Politics
    • served as its director from 2000–2003
  • elected fellow of the American Law Institute
  • elected fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel
  • Senior Counsel in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP
  • official consultant to the Russian Federation to help design a comprehensive tax code

Books

  • A New Understanding of Property — forthcoming
  • Fair Not Flat: How to Make the Tax System Better and Simpler — advocating a progressive consumption tax based on spending rather than income
  • Taxing Women — discussing the gender inequity of the current United States income tax code which penalizes working women

Bibliography

  • "Cognitive Theory and Tax"
  • "Framing the Jury: Cognitive Perspectives on Pain and Suffering Awards" — with Daniel Kahneman and Matthew Spitzer
  • "Slouching Towards Equality: Gender Discrimination, Market Efficiency, and Social Change"
  • Behavioral Public Finance — co-editor
  • Rethinking the Vote: The Politics and Prospects of American Election Reform ­— co-editor

Obviously, I greatly favour bullet points for rapid internal consumption, and I don't give a rat's ass about named chairs. (Is the chair named for a paragon worthy of recollection and adoration, or is the chair named for a Big Ivy benefactor purchasing moral absolution? If it's somehow our problem to muddle through the incredibly large difference, who ordered that?)

At Wikipedia, his books and bibliography might be better combined. — MaxEnt 21:37, 22 December 2022 (UTC)

Broken link fix


  • What I think should be changed: Replace broken external link.
  • Why it should be changed: The first link under External Links on the Wikipedia page is broken.
  • References supporting the possible change (format using the "cite" button):

Broken link for replacement consideration, under External Links: http://law.usc.edu/contact/contactInfo.cfm?detailID=237

Link to replace it with: https://gould.usc.edu/faculty/profile/edward-mccaffery

Lpuro (talk) 21:47, 16 September 2025 (UTC)

References

Go ahead: I have reviewed these proposed changes and suggest that you go ahead and make the proposed changes to the page. GoldRomean (talk) 19:23, 9 October 2025 (UTC)

Buy, Borrow, Die

Request for Update (COI)

Request for factual updates and full rewrite (COI disclosure) == Hello — I am the subject of this article and am posting in accordance with Wikipedia’s conflict-of-interest guidelines. I will not edit the article directly. The current page contains outdated information about my positions, dates, affiliations, and publications, and it lacks citations to reliable secondary sources. I am requesting a neutral, fully sourced update. Below is a complete proposed draft written in line with WP:NPOV, WP:V, WP:RS, and WP:BIO. All changes are supported by reliable sources cited in this request. Volunteer editors should feel free to trim for WP:WEIGHT as appropriate. === Summary of requested corrections === 1. Update academic titles and affiliations at USC and Caltech to reflect accurate timelines (1995–2016 at Caltech; Packard Trustee Chair since 2004). 2. Correct current professional status as Senior Counsel at Seyfarth Shaw LLP. 3. Replace “associated with” with “coined the phrase ‘Buy, Borrow, Die,’” supported by multiple reliable sources. 4. Add documented public commentary in CNN Opinion and The Huffington Post, as listed on USC’s faculty page. 5. Add People’s Tax Page (2017–present) with citation. 6. Refresh “Selected Works” to include representative major works from the 1990s through 2025. 7. Correct birthdate to December 8, 1958. === Proposed new article text === <nowiki> Edward J. McCaffery (born December 8, 1958) is an American legal scholar of tax law and public finance. He is the Robert C. Packard Trustee Chair in Law and Professor of Law, Economics and Political Science at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, and Senior Counsel in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. McCaffery’s work addresses tax policy, behavioral public finance, and property theory. He is widely known for explaining how affluent taxpayers minimize income and capital‑gains taxation through the pattern he coined as “Buy, Borrow, Die.” == Early life and education == McCaffery earned a B.A. (summa cum laude) in Classics and Philosophy from Yale College (1980), a J.D. (magna cum laude) from Harvard Law School (1985), and an M.A. in Economics from the University of Southern California (1994). == Academic career == After clerking for Chief Justice Robert N. Wilentz of the New Jersey Supreme Court (1985–1986), McCaffery practiced law and joined the USC Gould School of Law faculty in 1989. He became Professor of Law in 1994; served as Maurice Jones, Jr. Professor of Law (1998–2004); has held the Robert C. Packard Trustee Chair since 2004; and was interim dean of the law school from 2006–2007. McCaffery was Visiting Professor of Law and Economics at the California Institute of Technology from 1995 to 2016, teaching courses in public finance, law and economics, and law and technology. He has held additional visiting appointments at Yale Law School, UCLA School of Law, and Harvard Law School. == Other professional roles == McCaffery serves as Senior Counsel at Seyfarth Shaw LLP in Los Angeles, practicing in trusts and estates, tax, and intellectual property. == Scholarship and public impact == === Buy, Borrow, Die === McCaffery coined the phrase “Buy, Borrow, Die” in the 1990s to explain how wealthy Americans avoid taxation by purchasing appreciating assets, borrowing against them, and passing the assets at death with a step‑up in basis. The framework gained national attention in 2021 following reporting by ProPublica, coverage in The Wall Street Journal, analysis in The Atlantic, and commentary in business and financial media. === Books and scholarly work === McCaffery’s books include: * ''Taxing Women'' (1997) * ''Fair Not Flat'' (2002; pbk. 2006) * ''Behavioral Public Finance'' (co‑editor, 2006) * ''Oxford Introductions to U.S. Law: Income Tax Law'' (2012) * ''The Income Tax Collapse: Buy, Borrow, Die and Beyond'' (with David Gamage, forthcoming, Oxford University Press, 2026) * ''The Road to Oligarchy'' (in progress) His scholarship spans tax policy, public finance, behavioral economics, and property theory. === Public commentary (CNN, HuffPost, and popular writing) === McCaffery has written widely for CNN Opinion and The Huffington Post on tax fairness, inequality, public finance, and U.S. economic policy, as documented on his USC faculty profile. == People’s Tax Page == In 2017, McCaffery founded People’s Tax Page, an educational initiative aimed at explaining tax and public‑finance concepts to a broad audience. The site includes explanatory videos, articles, and the animated “Sabrina the Unicorn” series. == Selected works == === Books === * ''The Income Tax Collapse: Buy, Borrow, Die and Beyond'' (with David Gamage), Oxford University Press, forthcoming 2026. * ''Oxford Introductions to U.S. Law: Income Tax Law'', Oxford University Press, 2012. * ''Behavioral Public Finance'' (co‑editor, with Joel Slemrod), Russell Sage Press, 2006. * ''Rethinking the Vote'' (co‑editor), Oxford University Press, 2003. * ''Fair Not Flat'', University of Chicago Press, 2002; paperback 2006. * ''Taxing Women'', University of Chicago Press, 1997; paperback 1999. === Representative journal articles === * “Moore Questions, Some Answers,” ''Florida Tax Review'' 28 (2025). * “The Curiouser and Curiouser Case of Carried Interest,” ''Arizona Law Review'' 66 (2024). * “The Property‑Tax Bundle of Rights,” ''Michigan State Law Review'' (2024). * “Enough Insanity?,” ''Pittsburgh Tax Review'' 20 (2023). * “The Paradox of Taxing the Rich,” ''Florida Tax Review'' 26 (2023). * “The Death of the Income Tax,” ''Indiana Law Journal'' 95 (2020). === Foundational early works === * “The Political Liberal Case Against the Estate Tax,” ''Philosophy & Public Affairs'' 23 (1994). * “The Uneasy Case for Wealth Transfer Taxation,” ''Yale Law Journal'' 104 (1994). * “Slouching Towards Equality,” ''Yale Law Journal'' 103 (1993). * “Framing the Jury” (with Daniel Kahneman & Matthew Spitzer), ''Virginia Law Review'' 81 (1995). == Media and influence == Coverage of “Buy, Borrow, Die” between 2021 and 2025 appeared prominently in ProPublica’s “Secret IRS Files” series, in reporting by The Wall Street Journal, in The Atlantic, and in commentary including Bloomberg’s “Money Stuff.” == Honors and affiliations == McCaffery has served on major USC tax‑policy programs and is a member or fellow of professional organizations including the American Law Institute and the American College of Tax Counsel. == External links == * USC Gould faculty profile * People’s Tax Page </nowiki> === Reliable sources supporting the update === • USC Gould School of Law—Faculty profile (titles, courses, People’s Tax Page; CNN/HuffPost links): https://gould.usc.edu/faculty/profile/edward-mccaffery/ [1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnNXlO1omDw) • Seyfarth Shaw LLP—Senior Counsel listing: https://www.seyfarth.com/people/edward-j-mccaffery.html [2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1jhDp7QZr0) • USC News (“Buy, Borrow, Die gains new life,” 2021): https://gould.usc.edu/news/buy-borrow-die-gains-new-life/ [3](https://disqusrefugees.squarespace.com/blog/buy-borrow-die-how-rich-americans-live-off-their-paper-wealth) • ProPublica, “The Secret IRS Files” (2021): https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax [6](https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/propublica-jesse-eisinger-explains-jeff-bezos-elon-musk-avoid-taxes-2021-6-1030522799) • ProPublica explanatory video on Buy, Borrow, Die: https://www.propublica.org/video/buy-borrow-die-how-americas-ultrawealthy-stay-that-way [12](https://www.newyorker.com/archive) • The Wall Street Journal, “Buy, Borrow, Die: How Rich Americans Live Off Their Paper Wealth” (2021): https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/buy-borrow-die-how-rich-americans-live-off-their-paper-wealth-11625909583 [9](https://www.crunchbase.com/person/edward-mccaffery) • The Atlantic (Rogé Karma, Economy section, 2025): https://www.theatlantic.com/economy/ [7](https://www.propublica.org/article/when-billionaires-dont-pay-taxes-people-lose-faith-in-democracy) • Bloomberg, Matt Levine, “Money Stuff: It’s Easy to Borrow Money If You Have Money” (2021): https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-07-26/money-stuff-it-s-easy-to-borrow-money-if-you-have-money [10](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/mccaffery-edward-j-1958) • Encyclopedia.com biographical entry: https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/mccaffery-edward-j-1958 [11](https://www.nytimes.com/games/connections) • CV (Jan. 26, 2026) for publication verification and Caltech dates (available on request). [4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_McCaffery) Thank you for your time and help. Emccaffe (talk) 19:00, 16 March 2026 (UTC) == Request to implement updated biography

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