Hanna McGinnis

Hanna is a state and local tax attorney who represents businesses of all sizes—from small local Texas companies to Fortune 500 corporations—in audits, administrative hearings, refund claims, tax litigation, tax compliance and permitting, and complex state tax planning. Her practice spans virtually every major Texas tax type, including sales and use tax, mixed beverage tax, franchise tax, manufacturing exemptions, and other state and local tax controversies. Her work style integrates practicality and creativity in a way that allows her to resolve matters as efficiently as possible while avoiding unnecessary litigation.

Clients frequently rely on Hanna to handle matters involving significant transactional, legal, and procedural complexities, including managed audits, refund claims, personal liability assessments, contract drafting, tax permitting, successor liability issues, constitutional challenges, and disputes involving the Texas Tax Code. She works on both the transactional and litigation sides of the law, giving her both meaningful trial and hearings experience as well as extensive drafting experience for tax compliance work. She also works on tax policy requests to assist taxpayers seeking clarity on their tax compliance requirements.

Hanna joined SDM after working as a law clerk to the Honorable John A. Woodcock, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine.

Before law school, she began her career as a Manager and Translator for an online travel booking platform in Milan, Italy. In addition to serving as an English Translator from Italian, Spanish and French, she was a Content Editor and U.S. Project Manager for regional content editors. Following her time in Italy, Hanna earned her M.St. in Medieval History at the University of Oxford.

Turning her focus to the law, Hanna received her J.D. from Stanford Law School with High Pro Bono Distinction. During law school, Hanna served as an editor of the Stanford Journal of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Vice President of the Stanford Law for Gender Violence Prevention Pro Bono, Academic Chair of OutLaw, and a member of the Organizations and Transactions Law Clinic.

Hanna’s deep knowledge and interest in languages, history, and art give her valuable perspective when working to solve complex legal issues for clients.