2010 Arthur J. Dixon Memorial Award

The AICPA’s Tax Executive Committee voted to bestow the 2010 Arthur J. Dixon Memorial Award on Thomas J. Purcell III. The award was presented to Prof. Purcell by Patricia Thompson, chair of the Tax Executive Committee, at a luncheon in Washington, DC, on October 27.

Purcell is a professor of accounting and a professor of law at Creighton University, where he has been on the faculty since 1979. Prior to that, he was a tax consultant with the Omaha office of Touche Ross & Co.

Purcell has been a dedicated volunteer leader for the AICPA for more than 20 years. Most notably, he was the chair of the organization’s Tax Executive Committee. He currently chairs the AICPA’s Energy Tax Policy Task Force and serves as a member of the Tax Practice Responsibilities Committee. He has served on numerous other Tax Division committees and task forces, including the Tax Accounting Committee and the Tax Legislation and Policy Committee. In addition, Purcell has served on the AICPA’s Pre-certification Education Executive Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee and has been a member of the AICPA’s governing council.

Purcell is a long-time member of the editorial advisory board of The Tax Adviser and is a prolific author. In addition to serving as chairman of the board of the Nebraska Society of CPAs in 1997 and 1998, Purcell is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation of the Nebraska Society and has served on a number of the society’s other committees.

Among the awards Purcell has received are the Creighton University Distinguished Faculty Service Award, the Nebraska Society of CPAs Public Service Award, and the Outstanding Accounting Educator Award. He was named the Beta Alpha Psi National Business Information Professional of the Year and has twice been named by Accounting Today as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting.

This annual award honors the memory of Arthur J. Dixon, a CPA who had an outstanding record of service to the tax profession and to the AICPA Tax Division. The award was established after his death in 1981 to honor outstanding CPAs in the area of taxes and is the highest award given by the accounting profession in the area of taxation.