Accountant's malpractice liability to client. Heard in the Court of Appeals 9 October 1996. D. Keith Teague, P.A., by D. Keith Teague and Danny Glover , Jr., for plaintiff-appellant. Plaintiff filed this action against defendant for professional negligence arising out of defendant's preparation of plaintiff's personal income tax returns. Defendant answered alleging plaintiff's contributory negligence as an affirmative defense and counterclaimed for fees owed for the preparation of the returns.
Defendant is an accountant who owns a tax preparation business.
Prior to opening his private practice, he was employed by the IRS as an individual tax auditor. Plaintiff has various business interests in horse racing, construction, real estate rentals and sales. Plaintiff alleges that because of his lack of knowledge of accounting or income tax preparation, he hired defendant to prepare his federal and state income tax returns from 1977 to 1991. Each year plaintiff provided defendant with the financial information necessary for the preparation of the returns. When the returns were completed, defendant notified plaintiff who would then sign the tax forms.