I found the recent "rant thread" and the "negative engagement letters" threads VERY interesting - I attended a seminar from our state acctg group conducted by 2 attornies FOR a national professional E&O insurance carrier - Their stories (ACTUAL cases) would scare you "straight"! ANY tax advice you give to anyone (even in a casual setting) can become (and does) an "actionable" event! yes you CAN BE SUED for your "advice"! Their take was that "engagement" letters ARE necessary and by themselves wouldn't "win" your case but would be used to show your practices etc....