Vacovec, Mayotte & Singer, LLP

Preface: I am re-​posting my 12÷25÷14 review because it had been moved to non-​recommended status. Why? FAQs reveal that Unilocal uses «Recommendation Software» to decide which items to exile. The software’s parameters are almost completely opaque. Do you think Unilocal would make available upon request the factors that caused the Recommendation Software to demote my review? Not likely. As you must know, there is no way to reach a human being at Unilocal.No doubt, everyone there is too busy counting money to consider customer relations at this low level.
I understand that pornographic language, slander, denigration based on race, religion or skin color, threats, etc. would be reasonable grounds for deletion. Try to figure out, if you will, why my review was downgraded. Then consider the fact that there are 5 reviews of this business, four negative and one positive but three of the negative reviews were removed. Although the FAQs promise that outside influence has no role in deciding what get’s in and what doesn’t, the choice here makes me wonder. The public is being given a false impression.
The review (with a few minor changes):
«Remarkable. Sentence by sentence (except for the googling, Alex H’s experience {review removed) was precisely the same as mine. To which I would add mention of the extremely boorish and unprofessional behavior displayed by Mr. Vacovec at a first meeting with my my clients and me. At one point, I asked V a question that must not have seemed terribly intelligent to him but which was posed in a polite, non-​confrontational manner. V’s response: First a hard, cold stare. Then „You know you’re not helping matters any. Do you always do that?“ I was caught completely off-​guard by his response and actually sputtered out a reply to the question (which was nothing more than an insult). His reaction: „This meeting is over“ and with that he got up and started towards the door. My clients and I were absolutely dumbfounded. I have been a CPA specializing in tax for 27 years and I have NEVER experienced such offensive behavior – not with colleagues, not with clients, not from the IRS.
My clients restored order and he subsided. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss my their obligations under the foreign information reporting régime, his firm’s purported area of expertise. But during the meeting, V made statements on technical matters that were dead wrong.
Prior to the meeting, we sent him all the documentation needed to determine my clients’ exposure. Apparently he hadn’t looked at it because, at the end of the meeting, he asked my clients to forward him the very same documentation.
Our stated intention was to have V’s firm do a big picture review of the international information return reporting issues confronting my clients and a discussion of the options available to bring them into compliance. What we got was an unbidden and expensive review of my clients’ tax returns together with an extensive list of points mainly having to do with the third or fourth decimal of the currency translation factors used on the return. She was right about some of them so I corrected the return accordingly, resulting in a $ 2.00 change in taxable income.
After the meeting, I told my clients I couldn’t work with someone who was clearly not interested in my input. I asked them to let me to identify another firm with the right expertise. They agreed and I found a firm where we were treated respectfully, where we were listened to, and where we received value for our dollar.»
I wonder whether this will make the grade.

I have known Ken Vacovec, Paula Singer and Ken Light since 1987. Their work with The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation was invaluable. Their work and the work of their associates is first rate in both expatriate and domestic tax issues. I can’t recommend this firm highly enough! They are the best in the business.
George Everett

I was trying to understand the recent changes in policy and law regarding FACTA, OVDI, etc. and went to these guys for help as they advertise themselves as being experts in international taxation. Unfortunately the lawyer I talked to gave me extremely generic, sometimes incorrect answers and generally did not seem to be on top of the recent developments in this field. I ultimately had a better experience using Google to get information.