NEW YORK (May 12, 2020) – Elizabeth Drigotas, a former principal in the Washington National Tax of Deloitte Tax LLP and Attorney-Advisor in the Office of Benefits Tax Counsel of the United State Treasury Department, has joined New York-based executive compensation and employee benefits law firm Cohen & Buckmann, P.C., as senior counsel.
Drigotas’s practice focuses on executive compensation and benefits plan design. She has more than 25 years of experience working with compensation and benefits plan design and implementation, with an emphasis on related tax issues. Her clients encompass private and public employers, including multinational and Fortune 100 companies, as well as tax-exempt entities across multiple industries. A significant part of her practice involves advising financial services clients on partnership compensation, and she has extensive experience working on strategic acquisitions and private equity transactions.
“I have known Elizabeth for many years and am excited to add such a skilled and respected attorney to our practice,” said Sandra Cohen, managing partner of Cohen & Buckmann. “Elizabeth’s experience at the U.S. Treasury and Deloitte has afforded her an incredibly deep understanding of this nuanced area of the law so that she is able to provide clients pragmatic solutions, and often simplifies the most complex issues for them.”
“I am thrilled to be joining such a well-respected, innovative law firm,” shared Drigotas. “Sandra and Carol have built an impressive organization with especially smart attorneys known for their creative problem solving and unmatched client service. I look forward to adding value to my new colleagues and clients.”
At Deloitte, Drigotas led the compensation and benefits group within the Washington National Tax Practice, where she was a trusted advisor for multinational and national companies across all areas of compensation and benefits. She focused on nonqualified deferred and equity compensation, often within the context of mergers and acquisitions.
Earlier in her career, she worked at the U.S. Treasury as an Attorney-Advisor in the Office of Benefits Tax Counsel, where she provided advice and counsel to the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service on policies and laws and their related regulations, such as Section 280G, also known as Golden Parachute Regulations; the Economic Growth and Tax Reconciliation Relief Act; and proposals that led to Section 409A, which regulates nonqualified deferred compensation, among others.
Considered an authority in executive compensation, Drigotas is regularly invited to speak at industry events and write for leading publications. She is a member of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel; the American Bar Association, Employee Benefits, Section of Taxation; and the Maryland State Bar. She is also an active member of the community and serves on the Board of Directors of Young Audiences and Healthcare for the Homeless.
Drigotas earned her J.D. degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law (1992) and her M.P.H from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (2019).
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About Cohen & Buckmann
Cohen & Buckmann (www.cohenbuckmann.com) is a boutique law firm that focuses in the areas of Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits & ERISA. The firm also has an Investment Adviser Law practice. Based in New York City, the firm represents domestic and global companies with operations in the United States. Cohen & Buckmann attorneys are known for their practical problem solving and depth of experience in all areas in which they practice.