Can We Talk?

MANY BUSINESS OWNERS RELY ON THEIR CPAs FOR ADVICE. IF you're like that, be warned: accountant‐client communications are not protected as confidential. Information you divulge about your business, thinking that it won't go any further, could end up in the hands of the IRS. Although professional standards for CPAs prohibit them from volunteering client information, the federal government does not recognize communications between accountants and their clients as privileged. Thus, if the IRS were to mandate certain information about your business from your CPA, he or she would be legally required to share what he or she knows via written and/or oral testimony.