John D. Colombo
Albert E. Jenner, Jr. Professor
Phone: 217-333-7985
Email: jcolombo@illinois.edu
A.B., J.D. University of Illinois
Courses
Contracts
Corporate Tax
Income Taxation
Sales
Tax-Exempt OrganizationsProfessor Colombo received both his undergraduate degree and J.D. degree summa cum laude from the University of Illinois. During law school, he was recognized as a Harno Fellow and member of the Order of the Coif, and served as Notes and Comments Editor of the Illinois Law Review. Following graduation, he served as a clerk to Judge Phyllis Kravitch of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and worked for an Atlanta law firm for six years before joining the faculty.
Professor Colombo teaches primarily in the tax field. His major research interest and most of his writing is in the area of tax-exempt organizations. He has written numerous articles on tax exemption theory, on the exemption standards for nonprofit hospitals and on commercial activity by nonprofit organizations. His book, The Charitable Tax Exemption (with Mark A. Hall; Westview Press, 1995), proposed a new theoretical and practical system for determining when non-profit entities should receive tax exemptions. One of his recent articles, "Commercial Activity and Charitable Tax Exemption" (44 William & Mary Law Review 487, 2002), was recognized with the College's Carroll P. Hurd Award for Excellence in Faculty Scholarship. In 2005, Professor Colombo twice testified before the full House Ways and Means Committee in Washington, D.C., providing overviews of the legal rules for tax exemption under Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code and the rules for exemption of nonprofit hospitals. In 2006, he was appointed to the Board of Advisors for the National Center on Philanthropy and the Law in New York City. He is regularly quoted in the national press on tax exemption issues.
Professor Colombo served as Associate Dean of the College from 1995-98 and again from 1999-2000, and as Acting Dean during 1998, 2001, and 2002. He is a professor and past Director of the Law Minority Access Program and serves as President of the Order of the Coif. He has been recognized as a University of Illinois College of Law Distinguished Graduate, and has received both the Campus Award for Excellence in Graduate and Professional Teaching, and the Delta Sigma Omicron Award for Distinguished Teaching. He is a member of the American Law Institute, Georgia State Bar Association and American Bar Association.
