Hotline offers advice to accountants

Plunkett Cooney, one of the Midwest’s oldest and largest law firms, has partnered with the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants (MACPA) to launch a toll-free telephone hotline for MACPA members.

The hotline offers access to Plunkett Cooney attorneys who focus on professional liability and other areas of importance to accountant practices.

Questions regarding general issues are addressed quickly and at no cost to MACPA members.

“We have had an outstanding relationship with the MACPA for many years,” said professional liability senior partner, Lawrence R. Donaldson, who headed up the firm’s effort to establish the program. “This partnership allows Plunkett Cooney to provide real value to MACPA members, and we appreciate the trust they have placed in us to manage their hotline.”

The MACPA is a professional organization that provides education, information, tools and resources to more than 17,000 members around the state.

The association assists its certified public account members and affiliated professionals by providing continuing education programming, offering business support services and providing networking opportunities to grow their respective practices.

By calling (888) 700-5222, MACPA members can speak privately and confidentially with a Plunkett Cooney attorney to address such issues as responding to subpoenas for documents and/or depositions, responding to licensing and regulatory inquiries, responding to requests for documents or work papers by clients and responding to IRS inquiries. 

“Most of the calls have involved the accountant attempting to provide the best possible service to a client and to ensure that the service conforms to legal and ethical standards,” said Jeff Hengeveld, a Professional Liability attorney who answers many of the hotline calls. “We help callers work through the information to make sure it is exactly what they should tell their client."

Plunkett Cooney’s Professional Liability Practice Group members represent accountants directly and through insurance coverage to defend malpractice claims and to assist them with regulatory issues arising during the regular course of business or through litigation.

The firm’s attorneys also work with their accountant clients to design business systems that help mitigate liability and to safeguard professional licenses.

Established in 1913, Plunkett Cooney employs approximately 160 attorneys in nine Michigan cities, Columbus, Ohio and Indianapolis, Indiana.

The firm, which provides a range of transactional and litigation defense services, has achieved the highest rating (AV) awarded by Martindale-Hubbell, a leading, international directory of law firms.