Edward Zelinsky


Edward Zelinsky is a tax scholar on the subject of United States tax law, professor at Cardozo Law School in New York City, and frequent visiting professor at the Yale Law School. He has also taught at Cornell, NYU and Columbia.
Zelinsky has testified before the United States Congress and the House Judiciary Committee. He has served on the New Haven Board of Aldermen, and when elected was the first person to be elected to the Board while a student at Yale University.

Political views and activism

In 2003, he challenged the State of New York on its so-called "convenience of the employer" doctrine which enabled New York to engage in what Zelinsky and others have alleged is unconstitutional double taxation of telecommuters. The case, Zelinsky v. Tax Appeals Tribunal, was denied certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court after the New York Court of Appeals decided against Zelinsky. Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd subsequently attempted to introduce federal legislation that would prevent New York and other states from engaging in such taxation.
Zelinsky and Justice Samuel Alito attended Yale Law School together. In November 2005, during Samuel Alito's confirmation process for the US Supreme Court, Zelinsky supported Alito in the press, identifying himself as "a Democrat for Sam".
Zelinsky is critical of the Obama Administration's foreign policy toward Iran. He also believes the Logan Act is an anachronism in view of modern communications, and should be repealed.

Publications

His 2007 book The Origins of the Ownership Society examines the political and social implications of a defined contribution paradigm.