Wendell Bird

Wendell Bird (born Atlanta, Georgia) is an attorney practicing in Atlanta, Georgia who concentrates primarily in litigation and in tax laws affecting exempt organizations. He is a senior partner at an Atlanta law firm.^[1][2] He graduated from Vanderbilt University (B.A., summa cum laude, 1975) and Yale Law School (J.D., 1978).^[1][2] While at Yale, he served on the Yale Law Journal Board of Editors.^[3]

He is a member of the American Law Institute,^[4] has been an annual faculty member of the Washington Non-Profit Legal & Tax Conference for 28 years,^[5] and is a member of the Board of Advisors of the RIA Thomson Reuters publication, Taxation of Exempts.^[6] He has published more than 20 articles on the laws affecting nonprofit organizations.^[1][7] Politically he identifies himself as a Republican.^[8]

Lawsuits

In litigation Mr. Bird primarily has represented securities claims, such as a suit against Merrill Lynch and its Focus Twenty Fund,^[9] or a suit against TH Lee Putnam Ventures and Merrill Lynch,^[10] both of which resulted in favorable decisions; and charitable fraud and diversion claims, such as a suit on behalf of the M. L. Simpson Foundation, which is pending,^[11] or a suit against the Chatlos Foundation.^[12]

In 2004, Mr. Bird represented APA Excelsior III (owned by predecessor to APAX Partners) and other large Wall Street private equity funds (managed by APAX Partners) in a federal court lawsuit alleging numerous securities law violations in connection with a sale to Healthfield Holdings, Inc.^[13]

In 2000-2002, he represented the Bengard Group in a trial and appeal, winning in excess of $44 million.^[14][15][16]

In the early 1980s, Mr. Bird served as a staff attorney for the Institute for Creation Research for two years and served as a special assistant attorney general for Louisiana in a case for six years.^[17] As a special assistant he defended the state's "equal time" law, which was ruled to be unconstitutional by the U.S. Court of Appeals,^[18] and a rehearing en banc was denied by an 8-7 decision at the appellate level.^[19] The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the law's unconstitutionality in Edwards v. Aguillard by a 6-1-2 vote.^[20]

He has published articles in the Yale Law Journal and the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy.^[1][21][22]

Writing

He is the author of The Origin of Species Revisited,^[23] which compares evolution and an alternative he called "abrupt appearance."^[24] According to the National Center for Science Education's 1998 review of the book in connection with a case involving decisions of the Melvindale, Michigan school board, the book was out-of-date for use as a textbook (and was not written as a textbook), having been written in 1987 and using earlier sources at various points.^[24] The NCSE review also relied on two reviews of third parties, those of William Provine and K.J. Hsu, who disputed certain lines of argument and scientific evidence presented within the book.^[24]

Articles and Chapters

• Wendell R. Bird, "Freedom of Religion and Science Instruction in Public Schools," 87 Yale Law Journal 515, 1978.^[21]
• Wendell R. Bird, " Freedom from Establishment and Unneutrality in Public School Instruction and Religious School Regulation," 1979 Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy 125, 1979.^[22]
• Wendell R. Bird, "Religious Organizations and Tax Law," Federal and State Taxation of Exempt Organizations, Chapter 4, Warren Gorhan & Lamont Publishers, 1994.^[1]
• Wendell R. Bird, "No Relief But Much Red Tape for Charities and Foundation," 17 Taxation of Exempts 201 (2006).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird, " IRS Offers Guidance on "Election Year Issues" for Exempt Organizations," 15 Taxation of Exempts 269 (2004).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird, "Charitable Giving Techniques and Other Estate Techniques," J. of Retirement Planning at 9 (Nov.-Dec. 2003).^[25]
• Wendell R. Bird, "The Shape of Charitable Gift Planning After 'Repeal' of the Federal Estate Tax," 14 Taxation of Exempts 114 (2002).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird, "Political Activities and Exempt Organizations," 12 J. of Taxation of Exempt Organizations 243 (2000).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird, “Exempt Organizations Rules on Political Activities," 7 J Tax Exempt Organizations 195, (1996). [31]
• Wendell R. Bird & Harvey Koning III, "Exempt Organizations Face Sales and Use Taxes in the Aftermath of Quill," 6 J Tax Exempt Organizations 16 (1994).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird & Timothy W. Townsend, “Current Developments in the State and Local Taxation of Exempt Organizations”, 4 J. Tax'n Exempt Org. (WGL) 20 (1992).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird & Timothy W. Townsend, "Sales Tax Relief Not Automatic for Tax-Exempt Entities," 2 J Multistate Taxation 203 (1992).^[7]
• Wendell R. Bird & T.O. Kotouc, "Exempt Religious Organizations Have Strict Limits", 48 Taxation for Accountants 207 (1992).^[7]

Books

• Wendell R. Bird, The Origin of Species Revisited: The Theories of Evolution and of Abrupt Appearance. Regency(December 1991) ISBN 0-8407-6848-6
• John W. Whitehead and Wendell R. Bird, Home Education and Constitutional Liberties: The Historical and Constitutional Arguments in Support of Home Instruction (The Rutherford Institute report), Good News Pub (June 1984) ISBN 0-89107-302-7

References