This paper provides an overview of ethics in tax preparation. Accountants have an ethical obligation to provide clients with adequate information when preparing their taxes. Their role as an accountant or professional preparer requires they use proper judgment and accurately demonstrate and reveal their ability to perform tax preparation to potential clients. There are many consequences accountants face by not conducting ethical business practices. Riahi-Belkaoui (1992) correctly comments that accountants often must perform their role as a tax preparer in an environment that is governed "by a complex set of rules, principles and practices" (p. 25). There are inherent in these rules and practices structured moral rules of what one may consider "acceptable behavior" and unacceptable behavior.
             Accountants have an obligation to follow formal legal rules when preparing taxes, but also must follow "moral elements created by specific situations" and must accept their role in doing so, as well as their obligation to conduct business in a moral and ethical manner (Riahi-Belkaoui, 1992, p. 25). The theory that best conceptualizes the moral or ethical responsibility accountants have when preparing taxes is that of "consequentialism" or utilitarianism, which considers any action conducted by an accountant as being either ethically wrong or right, and this judgment is based solely on the "consequences that result from performing an action" (Riahi-Belkaoui, 1992, p. 26). One can easily ascertain whether an action is ethical or moral by examining the consequences of an action using this theory. It is also important however, that one consider the accountants intentions when assessing whether the accountant is engaging in moral or ethical business practices.
             As an example, let's say for example an accountant is faced with a situation where he or she is working with a client that wants to &qu...