Kelvin M. Lawrence

Kelvin is a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and a member of the probate and tax group. He has nearly 20 years of experience counseling clients including businesses in the manufacturing, real estate development, health care, financial services, technology, and charitable sectors on state and local tax matters. Kelvin regularly advises clients on Ohio, federal and multi-state tax issues, helping them minimize tax exposure and resolve complex tax controversies.

Kelvin has significant experience representing clients in Ohio property tax disputes, including valuation appeals and exemption applications. He also assists clients with tax controversies involving sales and use taxes, commercial activity tax, tax abatements, and pass-through entity tax issues.

In addition, Kelvin has counseled clients on the tax aspects of business transactions, including pre-sale due diligence, voluntary disclosures, and purchase agreement tax provisions. He has successfully secured significant tax refunds for clients and has represented businesses and tax-exempt organizations in audits, appeals, and compliance efforts before state and local taxing authorities.

Representative matters include:

• Advocating for real estate developers and business owners in Ohio property tax controversies involving sales, entity transfers, and tax abatements in a rapidly evolving legislative environment
•  Securing Ohio property tax exemptions for multimillion-dollar hospitality, exhibition, and parking facilities
• Counseling clients on sales and use tax compliance and audit defense in government contracting, medical, financial services, and advertising industries, among others
• Successfully appealing Ohio commercial activity tax assessments and refund denials
• Advising sellers of multistate companies on state income and pass-through entity tax treatment of gains from sales of business assets and equity
• Representing health care systems and residential care facilities in Ohio property tax valuation appeals and exemption matters

Kelvin has been recognized for his leadership in the tax bar and is active in several professional organizations. He has served in leadership roles for the American Bar Association Section of Taxation and the Ohio State Bar Association. He is also a frequent speaker and author on state and local tax topics and has been published in Bloomberg Tax.

Kelvin earned his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and his B.A., summa cum laude, from Florida A&M University.

Honors & Recognitions

The Best Lawyers in America, Tax Law, 2018-2026

Professional & Community Activities

American Bar Association Section of Taxation, Member, 2007-Present; Co-Chair, State and Local Tax Committee’s Task Force on the Multistate Tax Commission’s Project on the State Taxation of Partnerships; Co-Chair, State and Local Tax Committee Pass-through Entity Tax Subcommittee

Ohio State Bar Association, Taxation Law Committee, Member, 2009-Present; Chair, 2014–2016; Income Tax Subcommittee, Chair

Paul J. Hartman State and Local Tax Forum, Advisory Board Member, 2022-Present

NYU State and Local Tax Institute, Advisory Board Member, 2020-Present

John Mercer Langston Bar Association, Member, 2008-Present; Former Co-Chair, Finance and Fundraising Committee

Bloomberg Tax State and Local Tax Advisory Board Member

Tax Analysts Tax Notes State Advisory Council Member