Privacy Notice for Atherton & Associates, LLP Individual Tax Clients

Protecting your privacy is fundamental to the way Atherton & Associates, LLP conducts business. This Privacy Notice explains the types of information we collect from our individual clients (referred to as “you” or “your”) in order to provide personal tax return preparation and tax consulting services; how we may use or disclose that information; and the measure we take to safeguard that information.

 

Type of Information We Collect

To provide personal tax return preparation and tax consulting services (referred to as the Services), we obtain nonpublic personal information (Client Information) about you. This may include:

  • Information we receive directly from you on tax preparation questionnaires and surveys, and through meetings, telephones calls, emails, client portals, faxes, and follow-up consultations with you (such as your name, address, social security number, family and marital status, and information about your income, assets, retirement assets, account balances, investments, liabilities, expenses, and personal financial transactions);
  • Information from federal and state tax forms and tax returns that we receive directly form you or from other financial service providers or tax preparation firms that you have authorized to give us this information; and
  • Information from statements or records we receive from investment firms or other professionals that you have retained and directed to provided information directly to us.

 

How We Use and Disclose Client Information

In order to provide the Services, we may disclose Client information to non-affiliated companies that perform services to assist us in processing tax returns and data storage (service providers). We require all service providers to have written contracts with us that specify appropriate uses of Client Information.

 

We may also disclose Client Information to non-affiliated third parties for other purposes required or permitted by law or regulation. Such disclosures may include disclosures necessary:

To comply with a court order, legal process, or other judicial or investigative proceeding that produces a request for information from Atherton & Associates;

  • To permit auditing of account information
  • To fulfill or respond to a request from you or that of your authorized representative;
  • To sell or transfer our business or assets; and
  • As otherwise described in this Privacy Notices.

 

Use and Disclosure of Client Information That Requires Your Prior Written Consent

Atherton & Associates’ use and disclosure of Client Information is controlled by Section 7216 of the Internal Revenue Code, the Gramm Leach Bliley Act of 1999, certain other laws, and Atherton & Associates’ policies.

Section 7216 of the Internal Revenue Code requires we have your consent (opt in) before we disclose information that we obtain to prepare your tax return to third parties, except the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and law enforcement officials, and except for certain disclosures for other lawful purposes (including disclosures to our service providers who assist us with tax return preparation.) We will only disclose Client Information with your prior written consent, if that is required under Section 7216.

The Gramm Leach Bliley Act of 1999 requires we give you the option to prohibit disclosure of your nonpublic personal information to nonaffiliated third parties for marketing purposes, if we will make such disclosures. This is referred to as an “opt out” right. We do not disclose Client Information to non-affiliated third parties for marketing purposes, so it is not necessary for us to provide you with the opportunity to opt out of having your information disclosed in this manner.

 

How We Protect Your Information

All Atherton & Associates professionals are bound by codes of professional conduct, and all Atherton & Associates employees are additionally bound by the Atherton & Associates Code of Conduct and company policies, to protect the confidentiality of Client Information, and to prevent unauthorized access to, use, or disclosure of Client Information. The use of, and access to, Client Information is restricted to those employees who need to know that information to provide Services to you. We maintain commercially reasonable physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect Client Information from unauthorized access and disclosure.

 

Former Clients

If you are no longer a client of Atherton & Associates’ tax return preparation and tax consulting services, we continue to use, disclose and safeguard Client Information as described above.