Fla. Stat. § 90.5055 — Accountant-client privilege

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(1) For purposes of this section:

  1. (a) An “accountant” is a certified public accountant or a public accountant.
  2. (b) A “client” is any person, public officer, corporation, association, or other organization or entity, either public or private, who consults an accountant with the purpose of obtaining accounting services.
  3. (c) A communication between an accountant and the accountant’s client is “confidential” if it is not intended to be disclosed to third persons other than:
    1. 1. Those to whom disclosure is in furtherance of the rendition of accounting services to the client.
    2. 2. Those reasonably necessary for the transmission of the communication.

(2) A client has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent any other person from disclosing, the contents of confidential communications with an accountant when such other person learned of the communications because they were made in the rendition of accounting services to the client. This privilege includes other confidential information obtained by the accountant from the client for the purpose of rendering accounting advice.

(3) The privilege may be claimed by:

  1. (a) The client.
  2. (b) A guardian or conservator of the client.
  3. (c) The personal representative of a deceased client.
  4. (d) A successor, assignee, trustee in dissolution, or any similar representative of an organization, corporation, or association or other entity, either public or private, whether or not in existence.
  5. (e) The accountant, but only on behalf of the client. The accountant’s authority to claim the privilege is presumed in the absence of contrary evidence.

(4) There is no accountant-client privilege under this section when:

  1. (a) The services of the accountant were sought or obtained to enable or aid anyone to commit or plan to commit what the client knew or should have known was a crime or fraud.
  2. (b) A communication is relevant to an issue of breach of duty by the accountant to the accountant’s client or by the client to his or her accountant.
  3. (c) A communication is relevant to a matter of common interest between two or more clients, if the communication was made by any of them to an accountant retained or consulted in common when offered in a civil action between the clients.

A Florida-Specific Privilege: Unlike the attorney-client privilege, an accountant-client privilege is not recognized under federal common law. However, Florida provides this specific statutory protection to encourage open and honest communication between clients and their accountants.

What is Protected? The privilege protects confidential communications between a client and an accountant made for the purpose of receiving accounting services.

Who Holds the Privilege? Like most privileges, it belongs to the client, who is the only one who can decide to waive it.

Exceptions to the Privilege:

The protection is not absolute. There is no privilege for communications when:

  • Crime-Fraud Exception: The accountant's services were used to help commit a crime or fraud.
  • Accountant-Client Disputes: The communication is relevant to a dispute between the accountant and the client (e.g., a claim of malpractice or a suit for unpaid fees).
  • Joint Clients: The communication was made in a matter of common interest between two or more clients who are now suing each other.
§ 90.505 § 90.506
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