Rules & Etiquette

The following rules supersede all previous rules for Connect.

Thank you for being part of our community. To ensure the best possible experience for all members, we have established some basic guidelines for participation.

This is a great medium with which to solicit the advice of your peers, benefit from their experience and participate in an ongoing conversation. By joining and using this community, you agree that you have read and will follow the rules and guidelines below. In order to preserve a climate that encourages both civil and fruitful dialogue, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate membership in this community for anyone who violates these rules.

This site is provided as a service for the members of the New Jersey Society of CPAs. The NJCPA is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. We disclaim all warranties with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by NJCPA members or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall the NJCPA be liable for any special, indirect or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.

The Rules

  1. Don't challenge or attack others. The discussions and comments are meant to stimulate conversation not to create contention. Let others have their say, just as you may.
  2. Don't post commercial messages. This includes, but is not limited to, job openings/opportunities, firm/business acquisitions and CPE programs or events not affiliated with the NJCPA. Contact people directly with product and service information if you believe it would help them.
  3. Discussion of fees is prohibited.
  4. When discussing matters that may involve clients, members should be cautious not to disclose any client information that may go beyond what is available to the public (i.e., confidential client information) or that the client has agreed may be disclosed. This would apply even in cases where the client’s name is not specifically mentioned. Disclosure of confidential client information without a client's consent would be in violation of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct, sections ET 1.700 and ET 0.400.09.
  5. Use caution when discussing products. Information posted on the lists and in the libraries is available for all to see, and certain comments may subject you to litigation or a lawsuit.
  6. Keep comments professional. Avoid references to politics, religion and other personal matters.
  7. Misinformation and disinformation are not permitted and will be deleted.
  8. All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive or illegal materials are strictly prohibited. Do not post anything that you would not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.
  9. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants NJCPA and users of this site the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material.
  10. Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate members to take action that violates Federal or state antitrust or unfair trade practice laws.
  11. Remember that other participants have the right to reproduce postings to this site unless you specify otherwise.
  12. Post your message or documents only to the most appropriate lists or libraries. Do not spam several lists or libraries with the same message.

All messages must add to the body of knowledge. We reserve the right to reject any message for any reason.

Participants who suspect that unauthorized or illegal activity is occurring in an NJCPA community or discussion are recommended to report such activity to the NJCPA at webmaster@njcpa.org or 973-226-4494.

The NJCPA reserves the right to terminate access to any user who does not abide by these guidelines.

Discussion Group Etiquette

  • Do not type in ALL CAPS.
  • Include a signature tag on all messages. Include your name, affiliation, location.
  • State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
  • Only send a message to the entire list when it contains information that everyone can benefit from.
  • Send messages such as "thanks for the information" or "me, too" to individuals - not to the entire list. Do this by using the "Reply to Sender" link to the right of every message.
  • Do not send administrative messages, such as remove me from the list. Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove yourself from a list. If you are changing email addresses, you do not need to remove yourself from the list and rejoin under your new email address. Simply update your profile.