Andrew Leahey graduated from law school in May of 2016, but his professional path in technology started before that: he owned a small IT services company and worked in the tech sector before college and law school. Since graduating, he has leveraged that background to focus on the intersection of law and technology with a focus on tax and tax policy. Over the last nine years his practice has ranged from serving as a public finance attorney, to helping municipalities secure tax-exempt financing for critical infrastructure projects, to representing telecoms and food delivery companies facing complex tax disputes.

In addition to practicing law, Prof. Leahey writes about tax, technology, and policy (and sometimes baseball!) for various outlets. He enjoys bringing his research into the classroom and having an opportunity to integrate real-world legal developments into student discussions. For example, when students in his LAW 110: American Legal Systems course were analyzing the potential impact of the sweeping Loper Bright decision on multinational corporate transfer taxes for media outlets, he was able to bring that discussion into the course examination of the administrative state. They had an opportunity to bridge theory and current events in a way that engaged students directly about issues that matter to their lives.

Prof. Leahey’s favorite parts of working with the UGLaw students are their curiosity and level of sophistication regarding current events. Without fail, he reports that they come to class with thoughtful questions keyed to real-world examples, and are always eager to explore how the material they are studying applies to the news they are receiving. Across the board he has found them to be proactive and open to feedback, always looking for ways to reconcile their life experience, outside knowledge and course content — which leads to nuanced and insightful in-class discussions.

But those discussions, in required courses such as American Legal Systems or Public Law, or in electives such as Tax Theory & Policy, don’t come about by accident. Students are quick to point out how hard Prof. Leahey works to be an effective and welcoming teacher. Students give superlatives, such as, “I love the way Professor Leahey teaches and relays information. The heavy content mixed with his jokes stories and anecdotes kept my interest every single class. This was my favorite class BY FAR.” Or, “I cannot begin to thank Professor Leahey enough for how incredible an experience this class was. The discussions that we had in class made me look forward to getting up each week and going to class.” These comments help make sense of what would otherwise be a bewildering popular tax elective.

And that tax class? We’ll let a student explain why it draws great enrollment: “I honestly wasn't too excited for this course because I personally did not find tax interesting going into it, but I … wanted to take another course with [Prof. Leahey]. However because of the way he taught I actually ended up learning a lot and I enjoyed it a lot more than … I expected to. Cannot say good enough things about him as a professor, he's knowledgeable, personable, and you can tell he truly cares about the success of his students!”

At UGLaw, we don’t just lecture you about a bunch of dry facts. As Prof. Leahey demonstrates, our love for teaching and the law is so engaging, we might just convince you to consider a career you never anticipated.