Methodology
How Tax Advisor Index evaluates specialist profiles
Tax Advisor Index reviews Specialty relevance, source-backed evidence, profile clarity, and public-safe context. Sponsored Placement is disclosed separately and cannot improve Authority State.
Authority States
Leading Authority
High-confidence recent evidence of peer or market leadership in a Specialty.
Established Authority
Strong source-backed Specialty focus with current public support for the stated profile.
Emerging Authority
Reviewed specialist with credible Specialty fit and enough source support to publish.
Review statuses
Review Pending
Source review is not complete enough to assign an Authority State.
Insufficient Evidence
Available sources do not yet support assigning an Authority State.
What the review evaluates
Specialty relevance
Services and planning focus
Credentials and experience
Source evidence quality
Source evidence recency
Prospective-client clarity
Firm-specialist relationship
Profile completeness
Source evidence
Source evidence is reviewed for specificity, relevance, recency, and whether it supports the public profile without revealing confidential client information.
Firm website and specialist bio
LinkedIn or public professional profile
Articles, webinars, podcasts, or CPE/CLE
Credential or directory references
Service pages with Specialty-specific context
Advisor-submitted public-safe material
How profile review is governed
Tax Advisor Index reviews profiles under a consistent editorial and evidence process. The review checks whether public-safe materials support a clear Specialist profile, qualifying Specialties, source evidence summary, and proposed Authority State or review status. It does not certify tax competence, replace licensing, or substitute for client due diligence.
Sponsored vs reviewed
Reviewed Specialists
Organized by Authority State, Specialty relevance, source evidence, profile clarity, and reviewed ordering rules.
Sponsored Specialists
Optional disclosed visibility available only to accepted profiles where Specialty fit and inventory support it.
Sponsored Placement affects disclosed visibility within Tax Advisor Index surfaces only. It does not improve Authority State, source evidence, client fit, or reviewed ordering.
Accepted specialists do not need Sponsored Placement to be visible. Verified Specialist profiles appear in Reviewed Specialists, Specialty pages, Specialist profiles, Firm profiles, Get Matched, and Request Introduction when fit supports it.
Details and limitations
Need the trust/legal version?
Disclosure explains Sponsored Placement, introduction delivery, public-safe evidence, profile control, and professional limitations in more detail.