Leventhal School of Accounting

Graduate Degrees

Juris Doctor/Master of Business Taxation

Dual Degree Program

The Leventhal School of Accounting, in conjunction with the USC Gould School of Law, offers a program leading to the dual degree of Juris Doctor/Master of Business Taxation (J.D./MBT). This program permits a student to pursue a specialized program in taxation through courses in the Marshall School of Business, the Leventhal School of Accounting and the USC Gould School of Law. The MBT portion of the program leading to the J.D./MBT is 45 units, including 10 units of law school courses that are recognized by the Leventhal School of Accounting toward the J.D./MBT; a maximum of 33-36 units of Marshall School of Business and Leventhal School of Accounting courses are recognized by the law school toward the J.D./MBT Students must complete 76 law units to satisfy the J.D. portion of the dual degree.

Unit Requirements

The total number of units required for the MBT portion of the J.D./MBT program will vary, depending on the educational background of the individual student, but all students are required to complete a minimum of 30 units of business courses and maintain an overall grade point average of 3.0 for these courses. A total of 15 units of taxation, accounting and business courses listed below in Group I may be waived by the Leventhal School of Accounting if the student has completed substantial academic work of high quality from an International Association for Management Education-accredited school.

The courses in Group II are required of all J.D./MBT students. Students must choose a minimum of six units from Group III courses and a minimum of 12 units from Group IV courses. In addition, a student may choose three elective units from Group V courses or another course approved in advance by the director of the MBT program.

First Year

Required USC Gould School of Law courses (33 units)

Second, Third and Fourth Years

Forty-three units of law courses, including the law courses listed below, and 33-36 units of Marshall School of Business and Leventhal School of Accounting courses as follows:

Group I Courses (15 units) Units
ACCT 544 Introduction to Strategic Tax Planning 3
GSBA 510 Accounting Concepts and Financial Reporting 3
GSBA 511 Managerial Economics 3
GSBA 518 Accounting Control Systems, or
ACCT 572 Corporate Accounting and Reporting 3
GSBA 548 Corporate Finance 3
Group II Courses* (10 units) Units
ACCT 550T Tax Research and Professional Responsibilities 3
LAW 600 Taxation 3 or 4
ACCT 561T Income Taxation of Corporations and Their Shareholders, or
LAW 644 Corporate Tax, or 2 or 3
LAW 868 Business Enterprise Taxation 2-4
Group III Courses* (a minimum of 6 units) Units
LAW 644 Corporate Tax 2 or 3
LAW 717 Estate Planning 3
LAW 842 Partnership Taxation 2 or 3

*Students should seek counseling at the law school regarding all LAW courses.

Group IV Courses (a minimum of 12 units) Units
ACCT 551T Taxation of Partnerships and S-Corps 3
ACCT 563T Federal Estate and Gift Taxes 3
ACCT 567T Taxation of Transactions in Property 3
ACCT 568T Taxation of Foreign Business Operations 3
ACCT 569T Advanced Partnership Taxation 3
ACCT 570T State and Local Tax Concepts 3
ACCT 571T Taxation of Individuals 3
ACCT 573T Federal Tax Procedure 3
ACCT 575T Taxation of Financial Markets 3
ACCT 576T Tax Consolidations 3
ACCT 577T Compensation 3
ACCT 578T Advanced Corporate Taxation 3
ACCT 579T Advanced International Taxation 3
ACCT 580T Tax Accounting Methods 3
Group V Courses (0-3 units) Units
ACCT 572 Corporate Accounting and Reporting 3
ACCT 574 Accounting in the Global Business Environment 3
ACCT 581 Financial Statement Analysis 3
ACCT 585 Professional Responsibilities in Accounting 3
BUCO 533 Managing Communication in Organizations 3
FBE 527 Entrepreneurial Finance: Financial Management for Developing Firms 3
FBE 555 Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management 3
FBE 588 Advanced Real Estate Law 3
FBE 589 Mortgages and Mortgage-Backed Securities and Markets 3
FBE 591 Real Estate Finance and Investment 3
MOR 542 Strategic Issues for Global Business 3

Course Duplication and Prerequisites

Credit in a law course precludes credit in the corresponding business course, and credit in a business course precludes credit in the corresponding law course.

In addition, where credit in one program’s course precludes credit in the other program’s corresponding course, the course in which credit is received will be deemed to have met the prerequisite for all subsequent courses in either school.

Corresponding Courses

ACCT 561T and LAW 644
ACCT 551T and LAW 842

Note: LAW 600 Taxation must be taken in place of ACCT 560T to meet the J.D./MBT requirement. LAW 644 Corporate Tax may be taken in place of ACCT 561T to meet the MBT course requirements.