Citators allow you to track the history of a case and determine if it is still good law. It will help you identify other cases and related documents to determine where else it was cited. Both Checkpoing and Intelliconnect have citators to help you with your searches if needed.
Begin your search in Checkpoint by entering your key words and selecting what content (ex. primary or editorial) you want to search.
Your search results will be organized by the type of documents. The IRC is towards the top followed by treasury regulations and tax cases.
Take note of all the content in the resource. The links along the top will provide you with more information including explanatory material and linking you to the related IRC.
Links are available to look through in the panel along the right side of the screen.
These links open in a new window.
You can also search through the editorial content and the work your way backwards to the primary sources.
Take a look at the editorial content in the Federal Tax Coordinator.
The footnotes contain links back to the primary content.
Start your search in Intelliconnect by typing your search terms and selecting where you want the database to search.
Review your list of results. You can use the arrows to collapse or expand the search results.
This is the list in the collapsed form.
When you click on a result in the list, it opens in a smaller window below the list.
Clicking on the window in the corner will open this document in a larger panel or separate window.
Review the document for relevancy. You can also use the buttons along the top to locate other related documents including IRC and explanatory material.
These buttons will open in a new tab so you can go back and forth between the documents.
Keep your documents all open to go back and forth between them reviewing for information.
When researching tax law, it is important to always center your research around primary sources. Examples of primary sources include:
This is not a comprehensive list of primary sources. When searching in CCH Intelliconnect or RIA Checkpoint, look for a note or indication within the database that denotes primary source material.
Secondary sources are often a good way for you to familiarize yourself with a particular topic because they provide analysis or interpretation of the primary sources. This editorial content presents the information in an easy to understand way. These resources also often gather together primary source materials with the analysis, making them good places to begin your search.