Tax Research Techniques, Eighth Edition

• 1 Tax Research in Perspective, 1
  • Meaning of Research in General, 2
  • Research for Implementation of Rules, 3
  • Research for Policy Determination, 6
  • Research for Advancement of Knowledge, 7
  • Examples of Tax Research, 8
• 2 The Critical Role of Facts, 13
  • The Importance of Facts to Tax Questions, 13
    
  • Facts — Established and Anticipated, 16
  • Compliance, 16
  • Planning, 20
  • Some Common Fact Questions, 22
  • Fair Market Value, 23
  • Reasonable Salaries, 24
  • Casualty and Theft Losses, 24
  • Gifts, 25
  • Illustrative Fact Cases, 25
  • Gifts or Income? 26
  • Deductible or Not? 35
• 3 The Elusive Nature of Tax Questions, 59
  • Initial Statement of the Question, 60
    • Minimal Technical Competence, 61
    • Intermediate Technical Competence, 62
    • Extensive Technical Competence, 64
  • Restatement of the Initial Question After Some Research, 65
  • Dangers Inherent in Statements of Questions, 66
  • A Comprehensive Example, 68
    • Diagramming the Facts, 69
    • First Questions Call for Additional Facts, 70
    • The Authority, 72
    • Additional Questions, 74
    • More Authority, 74
    • More Questions and More Facts, 76
    • First Tentative Conclusions, 76
    • More Questions, More Authority, 78
    • The Final Question, 82
    • Summary, 82
• 4 Identifying Appropriate Authority, 85
• Statutory Law, 86
  • The Tax-Legislation Process, 86
  • The Internal Revenue Code, 88
  • Treaties
• Administrative Law, 95
  • Treasury Regulations, 95
  • Revenue Rulings, 99
  • Revenue Procedures, 100
  • Notices and Announcements, 101
  • Letter Rulings, 102
  • Technical Advice Memoranda, Determination Letters, and Chief Counsel Advice, 103
  • General Counsel Memoranda, 104
  • Action on Decision, 105
• Judicial Interpretations, 105
  • U.S. Tax Court, 106
  • U.S. District Courts, 109
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 111
  • U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals, 113
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 1114
  • Special Tax Reporter Series, 114
• Editorial Information, 115
  • Tax Research Services, 119
  • Treatises, 119
  • Tax Journals, 120
  • Tax Newsletters, 121
• Summary, 121
• 5 Locating Appropriate Authority, 123
  • Web-Based Services, 124
  • Search Strategies, 125
  • Finding a Known Primary Authority, 126
  • Using a Table of Contents to Locate Authority, 130
  • Using an Index to Locate Editorial Information, 140
  • Using a Keyword Search, 142
  • Formulating a Search Request, 143
    • Issues, 143
    • Terms or Phrases, 144
    • Logical Connectors, 147
    • Proximity of Terms and Phrases, 148
    • Scope, 149
    • Combining Search Strategies, 152
  • Validating Tax Law Authority, 152
  • Citator Databases, 154
    • Searching Citator Databases, 155
  • Validating Administrative Authority, 159
  • Summary, 160
• 6 Assessing and Applying Authority, 163
  • The Law Is Clear—The Facts Are Uncertain, 164
  • The Facts Are Clear—The Law Is Questionable, 167
    • Conflicting Statutes, 167
    • Conflict Between a Statute and the Intent of a Statute, 168
    • Conflicting Interpretations, 169
  • The Facts Are Clear—The Law Is Incomplete, 174
  • The Facts Are Clear—The Law Is Nonexistent, 178
  • Standards for Recommending a Tax Return Position, 179
• 7 Communicating Tax Research, 181
  • Internal Communications, 182
    • Memo to the File, 182
    • Leaving Tracks, 184
  • External Communications, 185
    • Client Letters, 185
    • Protest Letters, 188
    • Requests for Rulings and Determination Letters, 194
  • 8 Tax Research in the ‘Closed-Fact Case: An Example, 203
  • 9 Research Methodology for Tax Planning, 239
  • Tax-Planning Considerations, 241
    • Statutory Options, 231
    • Client Constraints, 242
    • Creativity, 242
  • Tax-Planning Aids, 243
  • Editorial Materials, 243
  • Continuing Education, 244
  • Tree Diagrams, 244
  • A Tax-Planning Example, 246
    • Stock Versus Asset Acquisition, 248
    • Other Considerations, 249
    • Five Corporate Reorganization Options, 250
    • Summary, 252
  • Tax-Planning Communications, 254
  Appendix A: Tax and Business Web Sites for Researchers, Advisers, and Students, 257
  Appendix B: IRS Circular 230 Considerations, 267
  Index, 277

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Tax Research Techniques is designed to aid tax advisers in the development of their research skills. The book employs a systematic approach to tax problems based on five steps, namely: the critical role of facts, the elusive nature of tax questions, locating and assessing appropriate authority, applying the authority to the fact pattern, and communicating the findings. Included are specific examples explaining in detail the five steps employed by successful tax advisers.

or more than thirty years, the book has aided practicing tax advisers, researchers, and students in the development and implementation of effective research skills. The eighth edition updates the examples and illustrations to reflect the changes that have taken place in the tax law over the past several years. Also, new and updated sections reflect the continuously evolving advances in the technology of Web based research.

The authors express appreciation to Ray M. Sommerfeld and G. Fred Streuling, who were coauthors of the earlier editions of this book.

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