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University of Miami International and Comparative Law Review

Abstract

Tax law has never been a neutral field. On the contrary, it impacts a range of identity axes, including socioeconomic class, race, and gender, and can act as a mechanism for maintaining the status quo or as a catalyst for social change. By examining the ongoing debate on critical tax theory in the United States, Australia, and Brazil, this Article shows that, no matter the differences found in distinct tax systems, tax law functions as a mirror of a country’s values and can be employed either to support or to disadvantage minorities.<.p>American critical tax scholars have consistently highlighted the role of tax law in creating barriers to disadvantaged groups, whether with discriminatory intent or embedded in implicit biases. One example is recent data on how tax audits conducted by the IRS disproportionately impact Black Americans. With the growing findings in the field come several challenges still to be addressed, such as the need to provide guidance on policymaking. On the other hand, despite evolving at a slower pace, a careful look at critical tax scholarship in Australia and Brazil reveals a flourishing literature on the role of tax law in increasing inequality. Australian scholars have drawn particular attention to the gender gap, e.g., by evaluating the impact of tax expenditures on women. Brazilian scholars have explored the role of tax law in widening gender and racial inequalities, for example, by assessing regressive taxes, such as the VAT, through feminist and critical race lenses. This Article aims to contextualize the study of critical tax theory and expound on it from the viewpoints of American, Australian, and Brazilian scholars, looking closely at the concrete perspectives taken by them and challenges they might share today and in the future.

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