When to use a lawyer or accountant in NZ

There is a useful rule of thumb behind most decisions about professional help: the more consequential and the more specific the paper, the more it is worth paying for. A lawyer and an accountant are different professionals solving different problems, so this guide separates what each one does and where each earns its fee.

When a lawyer earns their fee

Lawyers work in risk and documents. In everyday New Zealand life, three situations come up most often:

• Wills. You can write your own will, but it must be signed and witnessed correctly or it can be challenged after you die. A lawyer makes sure the document holds up and that your wishes are actually achievable. Given what is at stake for your family, this is where a small fee buys real protection.
• Conveyancing. Buying or selling a house involves detailed legal paperwork, and mistakes are expensive. In New Zealand the legal side of a property transaction is normally handled by a lawyer or a licensed conveyancer, and almost everyone uses one because the consequences of an error are far larger than the fee.
• Company and contract work. Starting a company, taking on a partner, or signing a serious contract are situations where unclear wording becomes an expensive problem later. A lawyer checks the structure and the wording so you understand what you are actually committed to.

When an accountant earns their fee

Accountants work in numbers and obligations. The common moments when they earn their fee:

• Tax returns with any complexity. If you have a simple salary and nothing else, you can usually file a personal return yourself. The moment you add a business, a rental property, employees or overseas income, the picture changes, and an accountant is usually worth it. The tax compliance guide covers the fundamentals.
• Choosing a business structure. Whether you trade as a sole trader, a partnership, a company or a trust changes your tax and your personal risk. An accountant helps you pick the structure that fits before you commit, because changing later is messy.
• Setting up and keeping the books. An accountant or a capable bookkeeper builds the record keeping that keeps you compliant and, when you need it, gives you a clear picture of how the business is actually doing.

The company setup question

Setting up a New Zealand company is something you can do yourself through the Companies Office, but there is a real difference between creating the paperwork and making the right structural decisions. The honest breakdown:

• You can do the mechanical setup. Registering a company is achievable alone, and the registry walks you through it.
• You then own ongoing obligations. A company has its own obligations that need to be filed correctly, and directors carry duties that go beyond just running the day-to-day business. Our business law guide covers these obligations.
• The structure decision is the part worth paying for. Whether a company is even the right structure for you, versus trading as a sole trader, is a tax and risk question best answered by an accountant or adviser before you register, not after.

Wherever you land, one habit makes every professional relationship cheaper and more useful: brief them properly before you book. Send the relevant documents and a plain summary of what you need decided in advance, ask for an estimate of the fee before work starts, and tell them what is actually at stake. A well-briefed professional gives you a better answer in less time, and you avoid the clock that quietly runs while someone deciphers your mess. It is a small courtesy that usually shows up directly in the invoice.