The book places a strong emphasis on planning and policy, not as an adjunct to the more common legal materials, but as part of an integrated pedagogic approach. Each case or group of cases is followed by three different sets of problems -- Using the Sources, Law and Planning, and Politics and Policy -- which are designed to develop the student's law, planning, and policy analysis skills on a systematic basis. Excerpts from leading law review articles are included in each chapter so that students can understand for themselves the basic issues in tax policy and legislation.
The book emphasizes current concerns in tax law and policy, issues and problems that are likely to confront the next generation of tax practitioners and policy-makers. Thus, substantial space is devoted to the new breed of tax shelters; the tax treatment of gay and unmarried couples; and the relationship of taxes to health, retirement, and environmental policy, without sacrificing the "classic" cases that are the backbone of any tax book.
The text consists of twelve chapters, each containing all of the types of problems described above and concluding with an in-depth, take-home problem that may be used either as the basis for in-class discussion or as a graded written assignment.