Tp signature queries

[elfling]

Much more often than we used to, we notice clients asking ~ Do "they" (meaning our office, in effect) have the "A" or whatever middle initial on the return? The issue is that the tp believes if the middle initial, or full name, or in some cases name on the SS card is present, then that is exactly how forms must be signed. (The SS card may contain a long, formal name that is not used on a regular basis.)

My standard response is telling the tp to sign how they always do. That signature being his/her unique identifier. This was something learned way back when (over 30 years ago) in one school or another. I have internt searched the topic more recently and also asked the opinion of an attorney friend of mine. Both come up with that same idea.

So next I went on to try to find a definition of a legal signature in the realm of the IRS and tax forms in general with little success. IRS.gov was no help. It took me topics of facsimilie signatures, signing for a minor child or others incapable of doing so, using and X or other mark, POAs, spouse in a combat zone, PINs, electronic signatures, etc. All good topics but not the satisfaction to our clients' questions addressing what constitutes one's signature or if it need match the name in print on the tax forms.

What say any of you?

[Jerry W]

I agree with your standard response. The purpose of a signature is simply to identify the person signing, not to precisely conform to the name set out on the tax return.

I found this on ehow.com: "Generally, a legal signature is a handwritten marking meant to identify an individual and affirm that she agrees with the terms of the document she is signing. Legal signatures are most commonly handwritten and may be printed, written in cursive or just a symbol. To be legal, a signature must be able to be attributed to an individual."

[michaelmars]

ONCE had a bank clerk tell me that i can't just use my first initial-i told her to tell that to JF Kennedy or J Edgar Hoover and see there reaction. A sig can be anything you want it to be as long as it matches each time.

[kcjenkins]

The part about how even an X ["your mark"] can be a legal signature should be enough to reassure you, Jerry. Half the signatures we see can not be easily read in the first place, yet they are legal. I tell clients to sign as they normally sign. All it would ever be used for is to determine that it was actually written by the person who is supposed to be signing.

[Gail in Virginia]

A long time ago when I worked for a bank and took an ABA sponsored class on banking/commercial law, I was taught that when endorsing a check you should sign the check exactly the way the name is printed on the check, and if that did not match your normal, legal signature you should sign it again underneath the first signature. Primarily this was addressing the issue of a check which might contain a slight error in the spelling of the name, but it also addressed checks made out differently than the way a person normally signs legal documents. Perhaps this is why our customers feel their signatures should match the return.

[michaelmars]

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/signature