

How do you hire a lawyer or an accountant? - d_r

Many (very helpful) discussions here end with "but you better consult an actual lawyer/accountant."<p>We (developers) know how to interview fellow software engineers. If they have never seen a hash table, they're probably not going to be a good fit.<p>How do you approach this problem for lawyers/accountants, e.g.:<p>- What questions are useful to ask in an interview?<p>- Are there any potential red flags to notice?<p>- Do any certifications help?<p>- Is H&#38;R Block really that bad?<p>- Is there a useful directory that I can consult?<p>- Are some lawyers/accountants better specialized for web/software projects than others?<p>- What kind of a lawyer would be most qualified to review a site's privacy policy/TOS?<p>And so on.<p>(I will be looking to retain both sometime next year and am based in the Bay Area. However, I was hoping for wisdom that would be general enough to help more hackers out there, at least those based in the U.S.)
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camz
Finding a great accountant or an attorney is actually pretty hard and this is
coming from a tax accountant. You'll find that finding a good professional is
going to be difficult in the same ways.

\- Questions Great questions to ask a tax or legal pro is to go for the
throat. What specific experience does he have in your industry and to name a
few clients. Most desirable professionals won't lie about their experience and
if they do, checking references will make sure they stay honest. I believe
everything you say, until I learn otherwise from checking. Having specific
experience is key because it doesnt matter how many years of general
experience they have unless they're able to understand your situation
specifically. I've seen a number of "generalists" miss big obvious pain points
on tax returns and legal issues.

\- Potential Red Flags Inexperience and lack of professionalism. Tax
accounting and law is fundamentally based upon experience (even the law that
controls the two professions is based upon the concept of "precedence" or
"experience"). No one learns how to be a great tax or legal pro. It takes
years to develop the necessary acumen and understanding behind the madness.
Also, lack of professionalism is when the pro doesn't have pride in his work
and half-asses his work. You can generally sense this from their behavior but
obviously you can always get tricked. But, usually the half-asses will make
enough experiences that even you'll notice. The problem is that you usually
notice when its too late haha.

\- Certifications They're required by law to practice tax and law. But, other
than their legal requirement its useless because it fails to tell you anything
besides they've met the basic requires to cram words into their photodex
brains with mass quantities of caffeine and adderral. Awesome example:
Everyone looks for a "CPA" to become their accountant expecting an experience
tax professional. Problem? Did you know that a CPA or an accountant's function
breaks down into two major dichotomies? We're either auditors (fact checkers)
or tax guys. Wanna guess what you're CPA is? CPAs are traditionally auditors
by trade and they generally outnumber the tax guys. I cant tell you how many
times I've met clients with crap ass CPAs because they never knew to CHECK
WHAT THEIR EXPERIENCES WERE (see the first question). All they knew was that
the CPA is certified and worked at some sexy big 4 (KPMG, PWC, EY or
Deloitte). Big mistake.

\- H&R Block Would you outsource your code to india? Enough said. I generally
ask every client to bring their tax returns for the prior 3 years if I learn
that they've been to HR Block. Ive found money left on the table 10 out of 10
times.

\- Directories Yes they exist. No you won't use them. Ever.

\- Specialization You're talking about a field that specializes in minutia. In
tax and law, every small detail could make or break your specific situation.
Ex. Sales tax. Professional software that is provided on tangible property (CD
or some other tangible media) will be taxable. Generally professional services
are not taxable but in this situation, your screwed.

\- Lawyer Refer to the first question. Anyone can review these things but
obviously experienced professionals could find potential issues that aren't
obvious. But, if another site or program has a similar function then you can
probably just copy their terms.

Sidenote: I'm really surprised at the number of questions the HN community has
for accountants and lawyers. I think i'm going to start a podcast on my blog
to answer these questions. Anyone interested (i've already bought a blue yeti
and etc so its kinda late to ask but I love new tech toys haha)

~~~
dtwwtd
I'd definitely be interested, something along the lines of a 20-30 minute show
that answers two or three questions in a good amount of detail would be very
useful to me.

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nowarninglabel
I had this same question, and found OnStartups had a decent answer:
[http://answers.onstartups.com/questions/1618/how-do-you-
find...](http://answers.onstartups.com/questions/1618/how-do-you-find-good-
professional-help-lawyers-accountants-graphic-designers)

Basically, the advice is to go by referrals. Perhaps, some experienced hackers
will give some good referrals here.

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gallerytungsten
The suggestion to get a referral is a good one. However, you may not have that
option. So what do you do alternately? Let's consider the answer for an
attorney.

First, define the legal work as much as possible by yourself. Think of this as
"legal pseudo code" that will ultimately be put into the proper legal
language. Do your homework: your problem is not new, and some googling will
find existing solutions. So before you start making any calls, you should have
a pretty good idea of what you need.

Now start searching law firms in your area (you definitely want them in the
same state, as state laws vary). Check their existing clients (if they name
any) and their practice area. Look for significant overlap; they should have
done work for companies in the tech sector.

Then start making calls or sending emails. By this time, you'll probably be
able to select the person you'll use as an "entry point" in each firm. Ask
them for an initial interview; there should be no charge for this. Present
your problem, and proposed solution. Ask: have they done something similar? If
not, get a referral. Now you're suddenly on the inside track. Keep getting
referrals and going on initial interviews. As you repeat the process, it will
soon become obvious who the top candidates are.

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kaerast
I went with one who is also on the board of a local networking group for
digital/creative industries. I figured I can't really go wrong with somebody
like that and so far I seem justified, she's invited me to local events I
didn't know about and all her advice seems really sound.

On the other hand my coworker picked the guy two doors down because he's
local. So he technically does have an accountant, but they've never met except
to agree they'll do paperwork together once a year. Now ordinarily I'm all for
picking the local provider, but I know which of these two I'd recommend.

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strooltz
Referrals from other business owners is typically how i find any
"professional" service. As far as lawyers - I'd recommend w/ someone
specialized in whatever your particular need might be.

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jfb
Ask a lawyer/accountant you trust. I realize that this can present a
bootstrapping problem.

 _EDIT_ : OK, that's a bit snarky. I've found that word of mouth is by far the
best method to use; if you don't know anybody in the field, ask your
friends/peers (I just happen to have friends who are lawyers, which helps
streamline things). It's highly likely that you can get introduced to someone
who can help you get a referral this way.

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rprasad
For lawyers: If you don't have the contacts for referrals, contact your local
bar association, and they'll either help you find one or get you in touch with
someone who can.

As for interviewing a lawyer: Interviews tell you diddly squat about a
lawyer's legal skills. All you will learn is how well they interview.

Avoid lawyers who use "I" a lot; this indicates they don't work well in teams
or collaborate well with clients. Avoid lawyers with corner offices (unless
you have VC funding), b/c you'll just be a small fry to them; your work will
be assigned to an associate.

Any lawyer can review web/software projects, but you may want to look for a
lawyer with an IP or programming background. The legal advice won't change,
but the dude will have a better understanding of how to structure his advice
to minimize the changes you need to make.

Any lawyer can review a privacy policy/TOS. Unless it's one of your selling
points, you don't need to pay a premium for a lawyer who has experience with
this.

