Google Answers Logo
View Question
 
Q: Explain Roles of Financial Planner vs Tax Planner vs Tax Attorney ( Answered,   0 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Explain Roles of Financial Planner vs Tax Planner vs Tax Attorney
Category: Business and Money
Asked by: uc1bear-ga
List Price: $25.00
Posted: 01 Feb 2005 01:23 PST
Expires: 03 Mar 2005 01:23 PST
Question ID: 466834
Hello,

I'm trying to understand the specific roles and interactions between a
Bookkeeper, Accountant, Tax planner, Financial planner/advisor, and
Tax attorney.

For example, what are common relationships and tasks between these
entities from the point of view of a small business owner?  E.g.,
might I hire an accountant, who doubles as a bookkeeper, or would the
accountant typically choose/hire his own bookkeeper?  Does the
accountant strategize about minimizing tax liability, or is that the
job of a financial advisor... or perhaps a tax attorney?

I can smell an "it depends" answer a mile away :) so I'll clarify that
I am looking for the *most common* outlook for a small/mid-sized
business who would not require any of these resources full-time, but
instead use them on an hourly/retainer basis.

I'd prefer (but not require) an answer from someone with personal
experience in this area, because I may have a few followup questions. 
Thank you!
Answer  
Subject: Re: Explain Roles of Financial Planner vs Tax Planner vs Tax Attorney
Answered By: richard-ga on 01 Feb 2005 04:12 PST
 
Hello and thank you for your question.

Bookkeeper
Your 'books' reside on your premises.  Since a bookkeeper keeps the
books, he or she is usually an employee of yours, possibly on a
part-time basis.  If your operation is so small that you can't afford
to hire a bookkeeper, then possibly your accountant has a staff person
who can come by every week or two to update the books from your
receipts, or you can make entries as you go on a product like
QuickBooks.
http://quickbooks.intuit.com/

Accountant
Most accountants are C.P.A.'s, which certifies them to render
financial statements that owners, banks and the public can rely on. 
Typically you would submit your books (see above) to your accountant,
either monthly, quarterly or once a year depending on your scale of
business.  Your accountant would then produce monthly, quarterly or
annual financial statements (balance sheet and profit/loss statement)
and would help with your estimated tax payments and annual tax return
preparation.

Tax planner
Not really a formal designation, but many accountants will give useful
tax advice based on what they see.  For example they might recommend
that you form an LLC or incorporate as a sub-S corporation, establish
a pension plan, etc., and they should be sensitive to issues such as
whether your payroll withholding is being handled properly, whether
you're keeping adequate records, whether you have suitable medical and
life insurance and the like.

Financial planner/advisor
Most financial planners have a product to sell, namely brokerage and
investment services and/or life insurance and are happy to advise you
along these lines for free.  Because of the obvious potential for
abuse, there are also financial planners who are fee-based, i.e. they
charge by the hour and do not accept commissions on your securities
and life insurance purchases.
http://invest-faq.com/articles/fplan-choose-planner.html

Tax attorney
These provide a variety of services, depending on your situation.
If you're in a civil or criminal audit, or if you owe back taxes, they
can deal with the IRS on your behalf, or they can work in the
background in support of your accountant (often the IRS is more
comfortable if the accountant who prepared the return defends it
rather than an outside attorney).
They're also a good choice to draft your will and living trust, since
they're sensitive to the tax attributes of estate plans.
If you're wealthy (at least a couple of million dollars) they'll have
more sophisticated tax proposals, including charitable planning,
pension proposals that your accountant may not have considered, sub-S
and LLC plans, again using your accountant's work as a starting point,
etc.

Search terms used:
Quickenbooks
fee-based financial planner


Please excuse the sparse number of Google research cites in the above
note.  This is an area that I'm familiar with and I was able to write
this ex tempore.

If you would like citations to particular concerns or issues, please
Request Clarification and I'll be happy to provide them.  I would
appreciate it if you would hold off on rating my answer until I have a
chance to respond.

Sincerely,
Google Answers Researcher
Richard-ga
Comments  
There are no comments at this time.

Important Disclaimer: Answers and comments provided on Google Answers are general information, and are not intended to substitute for informed professional medical, psychiatric, psychological, tax, legal, investment, accounting, or other professional advice. Google does not endorse, and expressly disclaims liability for any product, manufacturer, distributor, service or service provider mentioned or any opinion expressed in answers or comments. Please read carefully the Google Answers Terms of Service.

If you feel that you have found inappropriate content, please let us know by emailing us at answers-support@google.com with the question ID listed above. Thank you.
Search Google Answers for
Google Answers  


Google Home - Answers FAQ - Terms of Service - Privacy Policy