TAX EXTERNSHIP & TAX APPEALS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (TAAP)
EXTERNSHIP SYLLABUS - SUMMER 2017
OVERVIEW
This course complements your externship and fosters your professional development as a “student attorney,” so that you will be better prepared and face fewer surprises during your first few years of practicing law or working in a tax or accounting firm. After participating in this Program, you should be able to demonstrate the following:
· An understanding of law office, government agency or tax and accounting firm cultures and expectations;
· The ability to identify and understand professional responsibility issues and professionalism;
· Legal or technical skills specific to the practice area of your externship, such as legal research and writing, legal fact-finding, creative problem-solving, client interviewing, client communication, oral advocacy skills, etc.;
· The ability to apply these legal skills in context;
· Improved time management skills;
· Improved communication skills with supervising attorney(s);
· The ability to understand how the skills and experiences from your externship fit into your overall career goals and/or assessment.
INSTRUCTOR AND EXTERNSHIP PROGRAMS OFFICE CONTACT INFORMATION
Professor Natascha Ryan Fastabend
Associate Director, Graduate Tax Program & Adjunct Professor
101 Howard Street, Suite 430
Tel. (415) 422-2801 (work)
Tel. (415) 830-2555 (cell)
Stephanie Lervold, Program & Marketing Coordinator, Graduate Tax Program
Tel. (415) 422-4926
Ellen Strauss, Assistant Director, Graduate Tax Program & Adjunct Professor
Tel. (415) 422-4469
CANVAS LEARNING PLATFORM
Online content, including readings, timesheets, evaluations and assignments are posted on Canvas. All completed timesheets, evaluations forms and assignments must be uploaded to the Canvas Assignment Dropbox. Note that you must use your USF username and password toaccessCanvas. We recommend that you set your notification preferences right after logging in the first time so you will receive all announcements and other notices about the course.
Clickherefor instructions and tutorials for usingCanvas (https://usf.service-now.com/)
OFFICE HOURS
By appointment. Contact Professor Fastabend at or (415) 422-2801(work) or (415) 830-2555 (cell).
CREDIT AND GRADING
The externship is graded on a Credit (CR)/ Credit-Unsatisfactory (CU)/ No-Credit (NC) basis. To earn credit, students must complete all course requirements listed in the syllabus.
INCOMPLETE/LATE Assignments: An assignment will be marked INCOMPLETE if the Professor determines that it has not met the course requirements listed in the syllabus and/or assignment directions. Even if an assignment is submitted by the due date, it may still be marked INCOMPLETE. If a student receives an INCOMPLETE mark, they will be asked to re-submit a complete assignment, typically within a week from the deadline. Failure to submit the fully executed or updated assignment by the new deadline will result in another incomplete on the student’s record.
An assignment will be marked LATE if it is not uploaded to Canvas by 11:59 PM on the day it is due. Failure to submit an assignment by its deadline will result in the assignment being marked Late. Students will then be provided an additional week from the original deadline to submit the assignment, and failure to do so will result in the assignment being marked Late again. This will continue until the student submits the assignment. Please note, an assignment can be marked Late (multiple times) and Incomplete.
Both LATE and INCOMPLETE assignments will be marked the same in the grade book. Grades will be determined under the following policy:
**A COMBINATION OF SEVEN LATE OR INCOMPLETE TIMESHEETS/ASSIGNMENTS WILL RESULT IN A GRADE OF CREDIT-UNSATISFACTORY.
**A COMBINATION OF TEN LATE OR INCOMPLETE TIMESHEETS/ASSIGNMENTS WILL RESULT IN A GRADE OF NO-CREDIT.
Repeated failure by the student to respond to emails and/or phone calls from the Graduate Tax Program or Externship Office will result in an additional “Late” being added to the student’s record.
SITE VISIT
Throughout the semester, Professor Fastabend may conduct a site visit in compliance with ABA Standards.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
WEEKLY TIMESHEETS AND HOURS:
Externs must submit weekly timesheets to demonstrate that they are completing the required fieldwork hours. Beyond this purpose, these timesheets provide an opportunity for you to practice preparing billing statements. Timesheets also provide feedback to the attorney on how you are spending your time. Please refer to the Timekeeping and Billing Practices Guidelines, posted on Canvas, which also includes sample timesheets.
Although your supervisor is not required to sign your timesheets, you are required to review them with her/him each week before uploading them on Canvas. This review will help ensure that you are not revealing confidential information to Professor Fastabend and the Externship Programs Office.
Due by the Wednesday following each previous work week, timesheets must be uploaded to the Canvas Assignment Dropbox. All information on the timesheets must be typed; handwritten entries will not be accepted. Timesheets containing insufficient descriptions will be marked Incomplete. Please keep copies for your records.
Your first timesheet is due Wednesday, June 14.
Each week, students are also required to enter their hours worked in the SPRING 2017 FIELDWORK HOURS EXCEL SPREADSHEET. The completed SPREADSHEET must be submitted on Canvas by Wednesday, July 26.
UNITS AND HOURS
Please review the chart below to confirm the number of fieldwork hours you are required to complete. Fieldwork hours must be completed by no later than Monday, July 24, and your final timesheet FIELDWORK HOURS EXCEL SPREADSHEET must be submitted by Wednesday, July 26. While we have approximated a recommended number of hours to complete each week, please keep track of your hours and consider any breaks or absences in your externship schedule.
Part-Time Externship / 5 units = 225 hours à 33+ hours/weekPart-Time Externship / 4 units = 180 hours à 26+ hours/week
Part-Time Externship / 3 units = 135 hours à 19+ hours/week
Part-Time Externship / 2 units = 90 hours à 13+ hours/week
Also, keep in the mind the following:
· The hours should be spread out relatively evenly over the entire semester. Front-end loading of hours is not permitted.
· Externs must make up any time missed due to illness, interviews, classes, etc.
· Class time or time spent preparing timesheets or completing assignments does not count toward fieldwork hours.
· The weekly hours listed above are meant only to serve as a guide. Students are required to complete the total number of hours to receive course credit.
CLASS AND ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE
All assignments and forms are on Canvas. Use this list to check off the assignments as you complete them so that you are in a position to receive full, satisfactory credit for your externship. The Final-Term Evaluation will be completed by your supervisor.
CLASS: Orientation – Required to attend a mandatory orientation with Professor Natascha Fastabend. Date: TBD at the Downtown Campus (101 Howard Street)
Program Requirements; Timekeeping Practices; Assignment Clarification “Cheat Sheet”; Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Doctrine; Leaving Your Externship
First Timesheet – Due Wednesday, June 14, for the hours you completed during the week of January 11. Weekly timesheets are due every Wednesday thereafter.
Final-Term Evaluation by Supervisor – Due Friday, July 21. The Final-Term Evaluation will be completed by your supervisor. Provide this evaluation form, as well as a copy of your mid-term self-assessment, to your supervisor, well before the due date. The final-term evaluation includes the same categories for assessment that appeared on the mid-term self-assessment. Your supervisor should discuss his/her evaluation with you, and both of you are required to sign the document.
Student Evaluation of the Externship – Due Friday, July 21. Take a few minutes to complete an evaluation of your externship. Your evaluation provides me more information about the quality of assignments and supervision at your placement. In addition, our office and the Office of Career Planning would like to make this information available on LawLink for students researching prospective internships/externships, but you may elect not to make your evaluation available on LawLink or share your contact information.
Individual Meetings –Date TBD. Professor Fastabend will email you to schedule a phone meeting with her which will take about 20 minutes. We will discuss your assignments and the general rapport with your supervising attorney. Students who fail to attend this meeting will be required to reschedule the meeting and complete a make-up assignment.
Final Timesheet and FIELDWORK HOURS EXCEL SPREADSHEET—Due Wednesday, July 26.
JOURNALS
JOURNALS: All journals must be at least 800 words. Please include a word count with each journal and submit it to Canvas. Do not count your name, date, or the prompt as part of the word count.
Journal #1— Due Friday, June 16
Topic: Identify and describe with specificity, your primary goals for this externship? Consider
how you would like to grow and/or develop as a lawyer over the course of the semester.
Some questions to think about: What would you like to find out about this type of
work? What skills or experiences would you like exposure to? What skills are you
lacking in or need to improve? Please discuss these goals with your supervisor.
Journal #2— Due Friday, July 14
Topic: Discuss the positive and negative aspects of your externship, specifically
commenting on the quality and frequency of supervision and feedback. Also, discuss
whether you are meeting your externship goals.
GRADING
Grades will be submitted to the Registrar on or before August 7. If all timesheets, evaluations, and/or assignments have not been submitted to our office before this date you will receive a CU – Credit Unsatisfactory, NC – No Credit, or INC – Incomplete.
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