Kenneth P. Christman

Kenneth Phillip Christman, Jr. of Gaithersburg, Maryland passed away on Saturday March 20, 2021 at home, surrounded by family, after a valiant fight with thyroid cancer. Ken was a man of great intelligence, many interests, and unflagging optimism and positivity. He loved nature and being outdoors, enjoying hiking, cycling, running, skiing, swimming, and scuba diving. Never tiring of learning, Ken was an avid reader, traveler, and enthusiastic museum visitor, with varied interests including history, natural sciences, and art and architecture. Above all, Ken was intensely loyal to family and friends. When his parents were alive, Ken would make trips from Gaithersburg to Pittsburgh, PA for regular family visits. Ken was encouraging and supportive of his children’s activities, from Boy Scouts to Choir, and instilled in them the same love of learning, exploring, and living that brought Ken such joy throughout his life.

Ken is survived by his devoted wife, Patricia Loretz, and children Caroline (Sausalito, CA), Claire Marie, and Kenneth Phillip Christman III. He is also survived by his sister Holly Christman (Max Perr, San Francisco, CA), niece Eliana and nephew Luca, and brother-in-law Frank Loretz (Elk Grove, CA). He was predeceased by his beloved parents Jacqulynn and Kenneth P. Christman, Sr and dear aunt Lucille Malmborg.

Ken was born on September 28, 1951 in Pittsburgh, PA where he graduated from Shadyside Academy. He graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Princeton University, completed his PhD in Sociology at UC Berkeley and received his JD from Yale Law School. He started his career practicing banking law in San Francisco and then earned his LLM in Taxation at NYU. Ken then worked for the IRS in the Transfer Pricing Branch of the International Division. While there, he authored numerous regulations, including Treas. Reg. §1.482-7T, Taxation of Cost Sharing Arrangements, and other types of published guidance. Following this, he was an Executive Director in Ernst & Young’s National Tax Transfer Pricing practice in Washington D.C. where he focused on cross-border transfers of intellectual property and cost sharing arrangements.

A memorial service will be scheduled to gather friends and family when it is safe to do so.

The family would appreciate your words of remembrance on the tribute wall. If you would like to make a donation in Ken's memory, we suggest Montgomery Parks Foundation, The American Chestnut Foundation, or the Smithsonian Institution.