William M. Backstrom, Jr. and Matthew A. Mantle, both partners in the firm's Tax & Estates Practice Group in the New Orleans office, will present at the upcoming Council on State Taxation's ("COST") 2015 SALT Basics School in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 26, 2015. Their presentation, titled "State Tax Research Tools," will provide practical tips on conducting basic state and local tax research–including online databases and hardcopy text, with a brief assessment of select commercial resources–and preparing effective file memos. The COST SALT Basics School provides an excellent educational opportunity for new state tax professionals to significantly upgrade their knowledge base, as it incorporates separate modules covering income tax theory, sales tax theory, income tax and sales tax compliance. For more information on the program, or to register, visit the COST website.