Accounting and law are two interrelated fields. Both a lawyer handling the legal services of business entities should have at least a basic understanding of accounting, and an accountant should possess at least a fundamental knowledge of law, particularly in the areas of commercial law, labor law (if they also provide payroll and HR services), and administrative law.

In many cases, accounting entries are based on contracts that are used in business transactions. Clients of accounting firms often do not fully understand where the boundary lies between accounting services and legal services. Sometimes, this boundary can be quite difficult to define, and at other times, clients — out of convenience or a desire to save on legal services — expect accountants to provide legal services, such as preparing contract drafts. Accountants take on these tasks, risking the loss of their clients if they refuse. However, clients of accounting firms should be aware that while drafting simple contracts for business transactions may be relatively straightforward (one can use readily available templates), the preparation of complex contracts, where the terms are negotiated by the parties and go beyond standard templates, should be entrusted to lawyers, particularly those specializing in business transactions. While this may increase the cost of running a business, it provides legal security. It also ensures safety for accountants, who are then not required to perform tasks that exceed their competencies. The same applies to lawyers, who, in an effort not to lose a client, may provide accounting advice without having sufficient expertise in that field.

This article is the first in a series dedicated to the overlap between accounting and legal services. In these articles, we will address important issues that, in our view, we encounter in the course of our practice in this area.

If you are looking for bookkeeping services we offer, contact us:

Accounting Office / Accounting Kraków

PHONE: +48 12 345 21 06
EMAIL: biuro.krakow@prwt.pl

Accounting Office / Accounting Warsaw

PHONE: +48 22 292 47 21
EMAIL: biuro.warszawa@prwt.pl