Companies under review

When a review letter arrives, the fee questions change. The first is what your existing engagement letter provides: whether help with the review is included, what it covers, whether it survived the end of the engagement, and whether the fee is recalculated if the claim is reduced. The second is what help costs now if it is not included; hourly work with no budget is the term to watch. The third is whether to bring in someone new, which is a question for someone who can see the letter and the claim. Take advice first, and read when things go wrong alongside this page.

• Is review support included?, under the letter you signed, and does it still apply
• How do you handle a tax authority review?, who does it and what it costs
• What happens to the fee if the claim is reduced?
• What records will you need from us?, and does the adviser hold any you do not

Review support costs extra, discovered only when the letter arrived. Exit fees that lock you in, or records released only on payment, at the moment you need the file. Both have fair versions: support priced separately that you chose knowingly, a fee for work actually done. What matters now is to know which you have, from the letter, before you decide anything.

For help with a review itself, the models are narrower. Hourly fees with an estimate and a budget suit defined review work; on the shared example, 120 hours at $250 is $30,000, and a 60 hour overrun takes it to $45,000, which is why the budget matters. A fixed fee for the review suits a scope that can be defined. A contingent fee on the outcome of a review is a different arrangement again, and in some countries rules for practitioners restrict contingent fees in certain circumstances.1Source 1Treasury Department Circular No. 230, 31 CFR section 10.27 (contingent fees), and Ridgely v. Lew, 55 F. Supp. 3d 89 (D.D.C. 2014). More detail on the United States pages. Illustrative figures. The shared hourly example is for preparing a claim; it is used here only to show what an overrun does to an hourly fee. The getting independent advice page says who can give a second view and what to give them.

Sources

1. Treasury Department Circular No. 230, 31 CFR section 10.27 (contingent fees), and Ridgely v. Lew, 55 F. Supp. 3d 89 (D.D.C. 2014). More detail on the United States pages.  Back