Taxpayer (referred to as “Client”)
This letter is to confirm and specify the terms of our engagement with Client and to clarify the nature and extent of the services we will provide.
1. Character and Limitations of Services to be provided.
Our engagement will be designed to perform the following services:
(a). Prepare the federal individual income tax return and related schedules.
(b). State Income Tax Returns are prepared when specifically requested by the client.
(c). Consulting related to the engagement at hand.
Additional services can be provided as part of a separate engagement.
We will use our judgment in resolving questions where the tax law is unclear, or where there may be conflicts between the taxing authorities’ interpretations of the law and other supportable positions. Unless otherwise instructed by you, we will resolve such questions in your favor whenever possible.
Our work in connection with the preparation of your income tax returns does not include any procedures designed to discover defalcations or other irregularities, should any exist. You are responsible for ensuring that personal expenses, if any, are segregated from business expenses and that expenses such as meals, travel, vehicle use, gifts, and related expenses are supported by necessary records required by the IRS and other tax authorities.
Client has the final responsibility for the income tax returns and, therefore, you should review them carefully before you sign and file them. It is the taxpayer’s responsibility to timely provide all financial records and other information needed for our preparation of Client returns, although we will make a reasonable effort to obtain information from you that may be necessary to answer any questions we have. Your failure to provide timely and complete financial records or other information necessary to complete your returns may delay the completion of this engagement and/or negatively affect your tax position.
Client returns may be selected for review by the taxing authorities. Any proposed adjustments by the examining agent are subject to certain rights of appeal. In the event of such government tax examination, we will be available upon request to represent you and will render additional invoices for the time and expenses incurred.
The law provides various penalties that may be imposed when taxpayers understate their tax liability. If you would like information on the amount or circumstances of these penalties, please contact us.
INVOICING
Payment for invoice is due upon the transmission of the client’s tax return to the taxing authority. The payment of our services will not and should not be delayed due to slow processing time of refunds or tax returns.
Once your tax return is transmitted to the tax authority, we have no control over taxing authority processing times. Billing typically increases 5% per year and further increases may occur to additional complexity of tax returns. Invoices that are past due more than 90 days are subject to a 5% penalty per month that they are late.
RECORD RETENTION
AvMar Accounting Services, LLP is not responsible for the record retention on behalf of client. Client is to keep duplicate copies of all information provided to our office.
FOREIGN DISCLOSURE
Client is responsible for notifying AvMar Accounting Services, LLP of any foreign bank accounts, foreign property, and foreign assets they own during the engagement year.
EXTENSION
If necessary, client authorizes AvMar Accounting Services, LLP to submit the next years federal extension. Client is responsible for all necessary estimated tax deposits during the year, and they should contact our if they need assistance with calculating or submitting estimated tax payments.
If a client moves to another state during the year the client must notify us before the extension due date so that the state extension may be filed properly.
1. Termination of Engagement
Circumstances may arise during the engagement which may prevent the completion of the engagement or require our withdrawal. Either you or this firm may terminate the engagement at any time for any reason by written notice, subject on our part to any applicable rules of professional conduct.
2. Limited Liability and Indemnification
By signing this engagement letter, you agree that you will be completely truthful with us and that we may rely upon both oral and written statements and responses to questions. You acknowledge that these promises are the cornerstone of Client’s relationship with us, are made to induce AvMar Accounting Services, LLP to accept this tax preparation engagement, and that AvMar Accounting Services, LLP would not accept this engagement without such promises.
You also agree that our liability arising from this engagement shall be limited to the lesser of any actual damages which may have been caused by acts, errors or omissions in violation of our professional duties in all material respects, or the amount of the fees which you pay for our services. Further, you agree to release, indemnify, defend and hold us harmless from any liability or costs, including attorneys’ fees, resulting from knowing misrepresentations by the individual, taxpayer, or management.
3. Dispute Resolution
By signing this engagement letter, you agree to submit any dispute concerning our services to final and binding arbitration conducted under the Rules of the American Arbitration Association which pertain to the resolution of claims against accountants. The arbitrator(s) selected to preside over any arbitration proceeding must be mutually acceptable to all parties.
The arbitrator(s) shall have authority to award compensatory damages, but only for such damages as found to have been directly and solely caused by acts, errors, or omissions committed in violation of our professional duties, and only to the extent they are less than the amount of fees which you pay for our services. If the amount of compensatory damages is greater than the amount of fees which you pay for our services, than the arbitrator(s)’ authority to award compensatory damages shall be limited to the amount of fees paid.
4. Confidentiality and Third-Party Requests for Information
Work papers and other documentation prepared by us in connection with this engagement are property of AvMar Accounting Services, LLP. However, we will not disclose confidential information of Client contained in those work papers or otherwise disclosed to us during this engagement except when required by law or permitted under the rules of professional conduct governing accountants.
In the event that we are required to respond to a subpoena, court order, or other legal process for the production of documents and/or testimony relative to information obtained and/or prepared during the course of our engagement, you agree to compensate us at our hourly rates, as set forth above, for the time we expend in connection with such responses, and to reimburse us for all of our out-of-pocket expenses incurred in that regard, including but not limited to reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred by us in connection with responding or objecting to the scope of an information request, or incurred as a result of Client’s refusal to provide written consent to produce subpoenaed documents or provide the required testimony.
Our office is not responsible for record retention on behalf of the client. Client is to keep duplicate copies of all information provided to the offices of AvMar Accounting Services, LLP.
5. Integration and Modification
This engagement letter sets forth all of the agreed upon terms of our engagement with respect to matters covered in this engagement letter and shall be treated as the entire agreement between Client and AvMar Accounting Services, LLP. Any oral or written agreement, statement, representation or promise that is not contained in this engagement letter is invalid and unenforceable. By signing this engagement letter, you agree that the terms of this engagement letter supersede any oral or written agreement, statement, representation or promise between Client and AvMar Accounting Services, LLP.
If the foregoing fairly sets forth your understanding, please sign the enclosed copy of this letter in the space indicated and return it to our office. However, if there are additional returns or services you expect us to prepare, please note this at the end of the returned copy of this letter, just below your signature.
Very truly yours,
Thomas Andrews, CPA
AvMar Accounting Services, LLP
