Objecting to an assessment, properly
The window is short, the format matters, and the grounds you state first are the ones you are held to.
An assessment letter compresses time. The objection window is short, the format is unforgiving, and the grounds you put in writing first are the ones you will be held to later. Delay is the most common reason an otherwise strong objection fails.
Day one
Send the assessment the day it arrives. We review the basis, check computations against your file, and draft grounds that are specific, not a general protest. Correspondence with the Department should be consistent with what you will argue if the matter proceeds.
What not to do
Do not phone in an informal disagreement and assume it protects the deadline. Do not expand grounds casually in later letters if the first objection was narrow. And do not wait for “more information from the floor” before lodging: lodge on time, then refine with evidence.
How we work objections
A partner who has sat on both sides of assessment work leads the file. You get a written position on odds and options before we commit hours, and every material step is confirmed with you before it leaves the practice.
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