"Shagnasty" <Shag[at]nospam.com> wrote:
- quote -

As Enrolled Agents, you should be very proud of the high
moral character standards set by the Treasury Department,
which to the best of my knowledge are adhered to.

In my profession of law, where each state bar has its own
standards, many states are willing to tolerate admitting
people who could not be hired as police officers or
firefighters based upon their criminal history. They could
certainly never become Enrolled Agents. In addition, once in
the profession, attorneys are sometimes suspended for
committing atrocious violations of their fiduciary duties in
one state where they would be disbarred were these acts to
occur in another state. Again and again, repeat offenders
are given their license back based on "tolerance and
forgiveness." In Arizona, for example, law school graduate
James Hamm, a convicted murderer, continues to find support
for his efforts to be admitted to the bar.

As a result, it is very important to carefully check the
background of an attorney with the local state bar. In
California, you can go online to
http://members.calbar.ca.gov/search/member.aspx and check
out the education, experience, status and discipline history
of any member of the California bar. You can search by name
or bar number (mine, for example is 188789). In this way you
will know much more about who you are dealing with and may
verify their credentials as presented to you.

Because of the high standards of Treasury, I do not have to
worry about this if I need to hire, for example, an EA to
prepare tax returns in a potential criminal case.

Timothy E Kelly, Esq.
Certified Specialist, Taxation Law
State Bar of California
Board of Legal Specialization

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"Sassy Baskets" <sassybaskets[at]hotmail.com> wrote:

- quote -

A convicted shoplifter would have a hard time passing the
background check unless the IRS failed to discover it.

An EA should be a person of high moral character.

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Sassy Baskets wrote:

- quote -

In general, felonies.

Other things: Misdemeanors which are related to a "breach
of public trust" (e.g. fraud), or previously cheating on
one's taxes.

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sassybaskets[at]hotmail.com (Sassy Baskets) wrote:

- quote -

Well, they don't seem to be screening only for felonies
unfortunately, but hopefully you committed this before your
18th birthday? That would put you in the clear (according
to the question from Form 23 quoted below).

I believe Circular 230 refers primarily to offenses that
reflect a betrayal of trust. It will surely depend on the
details of your case, but I'd imagine that shoplifting could
be forgiven for purposes of being enrolled.

question 'f' from Form 23
--------------------- In the last 10 years or since your 18th birthday if sooner,
have you ever been convicted or fined for the violation of
any law, police regulation, or ordinance (excluding minor
traffic violations for which a fine or forfeiture of $500 or
less was imposed)? If ''Yes,'' give details of each case in
Schedule B, including the date and nature of the offense or
violation, the name and location of the court, any penalty
imposed and/or other disposition of the matter
-------------------------------------------
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Does anyone know specifically which crimes would disqualify
one from being admitted as an EA? Would shoplifting?

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