Scope and Responsibilities
This engagement will be conducted in accordance with the relevant standards and ethical requirements of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and/or CPA Australia. The procedures we will perform will be limited to those related to this service and, except in relation to superannuation funds, no audit or review will be performed and, accordingly, no assurance will be expressed. Also this engagement cannot be relied upon to disclose irregularities including fraud, other illegal acts and errors that may exist, however, we will inform you of any such matters that may come to our attention.
You will need to provide all information necessary to ensure timely preparation, completion, approval and sign-off of the above engagement. You warrant that the information provided will be accurate and complete and unless otherwise agreed in writing we will rely on that the information without further verification. Wherever possible we will report to you if we believe that the information provided to us by you is not reliable.
The information acquired by us in the course of performing this engagement is subject to strict confidentiality requirements, in that information will not be disclosed by us to any other party except as required or allowed for by law or professional standards, or with your express consent.
Scope Change
If on commencing the above engagement a situation arises such as an unforseen complication, a request for additional work to be performed or significant information was omitted on acceptance of the engagement, which was not factored into the fee for the engagement, we will speak to you immediately and advise you of the proposed change to this fee.
Limitation of Liability
(a) Professional Standards Act (NSW) 1994
Under the Professional Standards Act (NSW) 1994 and the Scheme approved under that Act, the liability of the firm, its partners, associates and employees or contractors is limited to a maximum sum of $500,000, where the fee for the engagement is up to $50,000, or ten times the fee (subject to a $20 million ceiling) for fees in excess of $50,000.
A copy of the Act and the Scheme are both available on the websites of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and CPA Australia.
(b) the Scheme does not apply to limit our liability arising from any of the following:
(i) death of or personal injury to a person;
(ii) negligence or other fault of a legal practitioner in acting for a client in a personal injury claim;
(iii) breach of trust;
(iv) fraud or dishonesty; or
(v) liability which is the subject of proceedings under Part 14 of the Real Property Act 1900.
The exceptions listed hereinabove are not exhaustive and may include other situations such as members not meeting the requirements of the Act or the Scheme, for example, non-disclosure of the limitation of their liability, etc.
(c) Contractual Limitation
You agree, to the extent permitted by law, that the liability to you of the firm, its partners, associates and employees or contractors, in any way arising from or connected with this engagement including, without limitation, liability for negligence, will be limited to a maximum of $500,000, where the fee for the engagement is up to $50,000, or ten times the fee (subject to a $50 million ceiling), for fees in excess of $50,000 and you release and indemnify the firm, its partners, associates and employees or contractors from all claims arising from or connected with the performance or purported performance of any services arising from or connected with this engagement letter to the extent any such claim or claims made exceed that limit.
(d) Third Parties
Nothing produced by this firm, its partners, its employees or contractors is to be made available by you to other than your own employees in any way whatsoever without our written permission and, in any event, we accept no responsibility to any third party. You agree and undertake that you will make the provisions as to limitation of liability known to anyone, including your own employees, to whom you may disclose anything produced by us pursuant to this engagement letter.
(e) Your Knowledge of this Obligation
We have discussed with you the limitation of our liability created by this clause. You acknowledge that we have advised you that you may wish to obtain legal advice on all questions arising from the terms of our engagement letter and, in particular, the limitation of liability provisions, because they may impact on your legal rights.
Indemnity
In consideration of our agreement to supply you with the services described in this engagement letter, you agree to indemnify this firm, its partners, associates, employees, contractors and any other person who may be sought to be made liable in excess of the limit of liability described above in respect of any activity arising from or connected with this engagement letter in respect of any claim of whatever kind, including negligence, that may be made by any person and any costs and expenses that may be incurred by us.
Severability
We agree that each of the promises and undertakings given in this letter of engagement are independent from one another and severable.
Completion of Work
We reserve the right to cease work for you until all outstanding accounts are paid in full. We will not be liable for any late lodgement penalties or general interest charge should your income tax return be lodged after its due date.
Quality Control
We have established and maintained a system of quality control which is in accordance with our professional requirements. As a result, our files may be subjected to a review as part of the quality control review program of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and/or CPA Australia which monitors compliance with professional standards by its members. We advise that by you accepting our engagement you acknowledge that, if requested, our files relating to this engagement will be made available under this program. Should this occur, we will advise you.
Provision of Information to Third Parties
In the performance of this engagement, we may use approved third party professionals that are known to us unless you advise otherwise. Please let us know if you do not want us to provide your information to third parties in the performance of this engagement.
By accepting this engagement you agree that your records may be made available to third party professionals who have been approved by us.