542.18 Licensees’ working papers — clients’ records.

1. Subject to section 542.17, all statements, records, schedules, working papers, and memoranda made by a licensee or a partner, shareholder, officer, director, member, manager, or employee of a licensee, incident to, or in the course of, rendering services to a client, except reports submitted by the licensee to the client and except for records that are part of the client’s records, are the property of the licensee in the absence of an express agreement between the licensee and the client to the contrary. Such statement, record, schedule, working paper, or memorandum shall not be sold, transferred, or bequeathed, without the consent of the client or the client’s personal representative or assignee, to anyone other than a surviving partner, stockholder, or member of the licensee, or any combined or merged firm or successor in interest to the licensee. This section shall not be construed as prohibiting a temporary transfer of working papers or other material necessary in the course of carrying out peer reviews or as otherwise interfering with the disclosure of information pursuant to section 542.17.

2. A licensee shall furnish to a client or former client, upon request and reasonable notice, the following:

a. A copy of the licensee’s working papers, to the extent that such working papers include records that would ordinarily constitute part of the client’s records and are not otherwise available to the client.

b. Accounting or other records belonging to, or obtained from or on behalf of, the client that the licensee removed from the client’s premises or received for the client’s account. The licensee may make and retain copies of such documents of the client when they form the basis for work done by the licensee.

3. This chapter does not require a licensee to keep any working papers beyond the period prescribed in any other applicable statute.

2001 Acts, ch 55, §18, 38