The Court offers public online access to opinions, orders, decisions, and docket sheets. The general public may access these types of documents electronically through the Docket Inquiry and Opinion Search features on the Court’s Web site. The Court also provides full public access to its records at the Clerk’s Office during regular business hours.

As provided by Rule 27(b)(1) of the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure, the Court has developed an electronic access (eAccess) system allowing petitioners, intervenors, corporations, fiduciaries, and certain other participants in Tax Court cases (referred to here as “petitioners”) and persons admitted to practice before the Tax Court (referred to here as “practitioners”) to electronically view documents in their case or cases. The eAccess system has two components--the Petitioner Access and the Practitioner Access--through which petitioners and practitioners may register for online access to information and documents.

Eligibility for eAccess is limited to: (1) persons admitted to practice before the Tax Court; and (2) petitioners (including pro se petitioners and petitioners represented by a person admitted to practice before the Tax Court) in open cases in which the petition was filed after 2004. To participate in eAccess, a user must register for eAccess (Petitioner Access or Practitioner Access) and agree to the Terms of Use.

To register for eAccess, petitioners must have a 2005 or later case pending before the Court. Documents are not available in cases in which the petition was filed before 2005. Thus, eAccess does not apply to petitioners in pre-2005 cases.

The Tax Court does not impose user fees or charge to view, save, or print documents. Each registered party may electronically view each document three times through eAccess. For example, a husband and wife who jointly file a pro se petition and register individually for eAccess would each have three views of all documents in their case. If twelve attorneys who are registered as practitioners forS eAccess file a petition or enter appearances on behalf of a petitioner, such as an individual, business, or estate, all would share three views of each document in the case. Further, a petitioner who is represented by a practitioner may register for eAccess, but he and his practitioner would share three views of each document. Registered attorneys representing respondent would also share three views of each document in a case.

After a party has viewed a document three times through eAccess, the document is no longer accessible to that party through eAccess. A document may be saved or printed, however, each time it is viewed through eAccess, and parties are encouraged to do so. Documents available to the public through Docket Inquiry or Opinions Search--opinions, orders, and decisions--may be viewed an unlimited number of times.

For further details on the eAccess service, please consult the eAccess Guide for Petitioners and Practitioners.