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Member Biography - Charles A. Trost - Partner

Charles A. Trost - Partner
Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis
Nashville City Center
511 Union Street, Suite 2700
Nashville, Tennessee 37219
Office: (615) 850-8911
E-Mail: charlie.trost@wallerlaw.com

Charlie Trost is a partner at Waller Lansden. Mr. Trost's practice focuses on state and federal tax law and tax litigation. Mr. Trost was recognized for his work in the area of tax law, as well as trusts and estates, in the 2006 edition of The Best Lawyers in America (Woodward White Inc.), as well as Business Tennessee's list of the "Top 101 Lawyers in Tennessee."

Mr. Trost recently represented two clients in cases that successfully protected the sales and use tax exemptions available to Tennessee manufacturers. Eastman Chemical Company received a $1.3 million tax refund when the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that chemical catalysts used by the company qualified as "industrial machinery" and were therefore exempt from state sales tax because of their integral role in the chemical manufacturing process. The decision was one of only three state tax decisions issued by the Tennessee Supreme Court in the past decade.

In the second manufacturing case, Nissan North America, Inc. received a refund of more than $500,000 after the Chancery Court ruled that systematic preventative maintenance of manufacturing equipment was exempt from taxation.

During his career, Mr. Trost has served as lead counsel on many significant reported tax cases, including:

• General Care Corporation v. Olsen, 705 S.W.2d 642 (Tenn. 1986)
• Newsweek, Inc. v. Celauro, 789 S.W.2d 247 (Tenn. 1990)
• Southern Living, Inc. v. Celauro, 789 S.W.2d 251 (Tenn. 1990)
• Penske Truck Leasing Co., L.P. v. Huddleston, 795 S.W.2d 669 (Tenn. 1990)
• Union Carbide Corp. v. Huddleston, 854 S.W.2d 87 (Tenn. 1993)
• Louis Dreyfus Corp. v. Huddleston, 868 S.W.2d 649 (Tenn.App.1993)
• Eastman Chemical Company v. Chumley, 151 S.W.3d 503 (Tenn. 2004)

He also has been involved in numerous tax disputes that have been favorably resolved at the administrative level or by the Chancery Court. He has written extensively on tax matters, notably Hartman & Trost, Federal Limitations on State and Local Taxation 2d., which he edited and revised.

Mr. Trost has extensive experience negotiating tax incentives and legislation for various industries and companies moving to or relocating in Tennessee. This experience includes industrial siting and government relations in tax and economic development issues. Mr. Trost is also a Rule 31 Listed Mediator in the field of General Civil Mediation.

Education

• B.A., Vanderbilt University, 1960
  
• J.D., University of Alabama, 1963
  
• LL.M. in Taxation, New York University, 1974

• B.A., Vanderbilt University, 1960
  
• J.D., University of Alabama, 1963
  
• LL.M. in Taxation, New York University, 1974

• B.A., Vanderbilt University, 1960
  
• J.D., University of Alabama, 1963
  
• LL.M. in Taxation, New York University, 1974

Clerkships and Previous Affiliations

• Law clerk to the Honorable William E. Miller, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, 1963-1964
  
• Partner, Courtney, Trost, Leech & Hardin, Columbia, TN, 1964-1974
  
• Professor of Law, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL,1974-1981
  

Professional Activities

• Member, America Law Institute
  
• Fellow, American College of Tax Counsel
  
• Fellow, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
  
• Member, American Tax Policy Institute
  
• Uniform Law Commissioner for Tennessee
  
• Treasurer and Executive Committee Member, National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
  
• Member, State and Local Tax Committee of the Tax Section of the American Bar Association
  
• Adjunct faculty member, University of Tennessee College of Law and Vanderbilt Law School
  
• Member, Alabama State Bar
  
• Fellow, Tennessee Bar Foundation, Nashville Bar Foundation and the Uniform Law Foundation
  
• Member, Board of Directors of the Paul Hartman State and Local Tax Forum since 1994
  
• Former chairman and vice-chairman, Tax Section of the Tennessee Bar Association
  
• Former chairman and vice-chairman, Tax Committee of the Nashville Bar Association
  
• Former chairman, Probate Committee and Probate Rules Subcommittee of the Nashville Bar Association
  
• Former president, Maury County Bar Association, 1970
  

Civic and Other Activities

• Trustee, Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee
  
• Member, Board of Directors of The Land Trust for Tennessee
  
• Member, Development Board of the University of Tennessee Agriculture Institute
  
• Member, Metropolitan Employee Benefit Board, Nashville-Davidson County, 2005