Attorney Profiles

Garry A. Pearson (Retired) was born August 27, 1934 in Minot, North Dakota. Educated in the Minot Public Schools, he graduated from Minot High School 1952 and the University of North Dakota in 1956 with the degree of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, with a major in Accounting and Law. He passed the National Examination to become a Certified Public Accountant in November, 1956.

Mr. Pearson earned his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of North Dakota Law School in 1958. He was member of the Order of the Coif and North Dakota Law Review.

He was selected to the United States Department of Justice Honors Program and was employed as a Trial Attorney, Tax Division, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. from August, 1958 to August, 1961. He was responsible for the preparation for trial and trial of tax refund suits in the Court of Claims and the U.S. District Courts throughout the United States.

Mr. Pearson established his private practice in Grand Forks, North Dakota in August 1961. He practiced under the name Garry A. Pearson, Attorney at Law from 1961 to June, 1962; Arnason & Pearson, Attorneys from 1962 to December 31, 1969; Garry A. Pearson, Ltd., a professional corporation from 1969 to 1973; Pearson & Christensen from June 1973 to June 2005 and under the name Pearson Christensen, PLLP from June, 2005 to December 2014 when he retired.

Mr. Pearson is the author of numerous Law Review and other articles including: The Professional Corporation, North Dakota Law Review; The Farm Cooperative, North Dakota Law Review, (reprinted in the Digest of Tax Articles); Is Goodwill Immortal? published in the American Bar Association Journal; Where Subchapter S Leaves Off the Limited Partnership Begins, North Dakota Law Review; the Limited Liability Company, North Dakota Law Review; and Introduction to Probate and Estate Planning, North Dakota Law Review.

He has been a lecturer in Federal Taxation, Estate Planning, Corporate Taxation, Mineral Taxation and State and Local Taxation at the University of North Dakota School of Law since 1967; a lecturer at the University of North Dakota School of Accounting from 1957 to 1958 and 1962 to 1967, teaching courses in Business Law, Accounting, and Analysis of Financial Statements; and a lecturer in Aviation Law from 1969 to 1972. Has presented several dozen seminars over a 35 year period of time.

Mr. Pearson was a member of the Regional Commissioner’s Lawyer’s Liaison Committee, Central Region, from 1972 to 1996; is a member of the Grand Forks County, North Dakota and American Bar Associations; member of the Grand Forks and North Dakota Society of Certified Public Accountants; serves as Chairman, Section of Taxation, State Bar Association of North Dakota; is a founding member and on the Board of Directors of the North Dakota Bar Foundation; was a member of the Board of Directors of the North Dakota Trial Lawyer’s from 1987 to 1989; is a fellow in the America College of Tax Lawyers; served as President of the Grand Forks County Bar Association in 1983; was a member of the Board of Governors of SBAND from June 1990 to June 1991; and was president of the State Bar Association of North Dakota in 1991.

In his practice he specialized in federal and state income, estate and gift taxation. He was admitted to practice before the North Dakota Supreme Court in July 1958 and is admitted to practice in the United States District Court for North Dakota; the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits; the Supreme Court of the United States; the United States Court of Claims, and the Tax Court of the United States.

Education:
University of North Dakota, B.S.B.A., 1956 , University of Wisconsin and University of North Dakota, J.D., 1958

Admissions:
1958, North Dakota, U.S. District Court, District of North Dakota, U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth and Ninth Circuits, U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Federal Claims and U.S. Tax Court; 1988, Minnesota

* Mr. Pearson has also been named as a Great Plains Super Lawyer.