Jennafer Norley Mesigian
Overview
Jennafer (Jenna) Norley Mesigian is an attorney with State Tax Partners PLLC where she focuses her practice on resolving state and local tax matters throughout the United States, with a particular emphasis on Pennsylvania matters. With a range of multi-state tax experiences, Jenna approaches audit defense and tax controversy matters with a comprehensive strategy and client-focused perspective. Jenna is committed to working closely with clients to achieve the best possible results to fit their business needs and tax goals. While litigation is always an option, Jenna seeks to achieve maximum results for clients at the most efficient and effective level. Sometimes, the best tax resolutions are the ones not in the spotlight.
Jenna is an attorney with 25 years of career experience. Her background as a Certified Public Accountant with a Master’s of Business Administration provides a strong business foundation. Jenna has spent a majority of her career with the multinational law firms of Reed Smith LLP and Dechert LLP. There, she worked on tax controversy matters at the administrative and judicial appeal levels, which were successfully resolved through negotiated settlements and litigation. From the client perspective, Jenna served as State Tax Counsel for General Electric Company where she negotiated and resolved controversies from the audit through administrative levels, often partnering with outside counsel for matters at court. She also assisted with tax strategy, tax reserve analysis, compliance reviews, and policy matters as needed. More recently, Jenna worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP where she led complex audit defense engagements and led the Pennsylvania tax controversy practice as the firm’s subject matter expert. Together, these experiences have provided Jenna with a comprehensive understanding of a client’s business needs, tax life cycle, addressing and mitigating risks, and particularly skilled at resolving controversies.
Over the years, Jenna has represented companies across the board from the largest multinational conglomerates to the newest start-ups. Jenna practices primarily in the income/franchise tax space for various industries, including but not limited to, financial services, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, retail, real estate, and insurance. Jenna regularly handles issues related to audit defense, apportionment, intangibles, nexus, uniformity, P.L. 86-272, net operating losses, research and development tax credits, bonus depreciation, etc. Additionally, she has handled sale/use tax, gross receipts tax, and insurance premium tax matters. Jenna enjoys the challenge of analyzing each client’s unique facts and circumstances within the ever-changing tax landscape.
Professional Licenses & Affiliations
- Pennsylvania Licensed Attorney, admitted to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (2005)
- Certified Public Accountant, Licensed in Pennsylvania (2003, inactive)
- Member, Massachusetts Advisory Council to the Commissioner (2016-2019)
- Member, Local Chapter, Tax Executives Institute (“TEI”)
- Member, State Tax Committee, Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs (“PICPA”)
- Member, State Tax Committee, Philadelphia Bar Association
- Income Tax Committee, Institute of Professionals in Taxation (“IPT”), 2022 and 2023 Annual Conferences
Recent Speaking Engagements
- Above-the-Line Audit Adjustments, ABA/IPT Advanced State Income Tax Seminar, March 2019
- Apportioning TPP and Intangibles, ABA/IPT Advanced State Income Tax Seminar, March 2018
- State Income Tax Opportunities and Risks in M & A, IPT State Income Tax Symposium, Nov. 2017.
- Resolving Audit Issues Without Litigation, IPT’s 40th Annual Conference, June 2016.