Donald B. Tobin

Associate Dean for Faculty; Frank E. and Virginia H. Bazler Designated Professor in Business Law; Senior Fellow, Election Law @ Moritz

Professor Donald B. Tobin has quickly become one of the nation's leading experts on the intersection of tax and campaign finance laws. Professor Tobin developed his interest in tax, economics, and election law while serving on Capitol Hill and in the U.S. Department of Justice. He arrived at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law in 2001, and has since become associate dean for academic affairs, the Frank E. and Virginia H. Bazler Designated Professor in Business Law, and a senior fellow of law at Moritz’s Election Law @ Moritz program.

Professor Tobin has written several journal articles on the intersection of tax and campaign finance laws, most recently focusing on the roles of nonprofit and other taxable entities that wish to participate in political campaigns. His most recent work includes Political Campaigning by Churches and Charities: Hazardous for 501(C)(3)s, Dangerous for Democracy (95 Geo. L.J. 1313) and Political Advocacy and Taxable Entities: Are They the Next "Loophole"? (6 First Amend. L. Rev. 41). Professor Tobin, with Professor Foley, were instrumental in encouraging the Federal Election Commission to consider further regulation of 527 organizations, and Professor Tobin testified in April 2004 before the commission on the future regulation of these “527 groups” in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in McConnell v. FEC.

He also recently co-authored a hornbook on federal income taxation Principles Of Federal Income Tax, The Concise Hornbook Series (7th Edition), and is writing a textbook regarding ethical issues in tax law.

From 1997-01, Professor Tobin was an attorney on the appellate staff of the tax division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where he won an Outstanding Attorney Award in 1999. He was an adjunct professor at American University’s Washington College of Law and served as a clerk for the Honorable Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr., of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Prior to his service with Judge Murnaghan, Professor Tobin specialized in the fields of budget, tax, and economics while working in Washington, D.C. Professor Tobin was a staff member with the U.S. Senate Budget Committee, the Joint Economic Committee of Congress, and for Senator Paul Sarbanes.

Professor Tobin teaches in the areas of federal income taxation and legislation.