A tax preparation company automatically adds the following disclaimer to every e-mail message sent to its clients: "A...

Ryan-Mahabir on October 24, 2019

Why is A correct? Why is B incorrect?

Thanks

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Annie on November 8, 2019

Hi @Ryan-Mahabir,

This question is asking you to find the assumption buried in the argument. The best way to go about doing so is to break down the argument. Here we have:

Premise: A tax company adds a disclaimer to all emails saying that any advice shouldn't be construed as advocating a violation of the tax code.
Premise: The only purpose of this disclaimer is to provide legal protection for the company.
Premise: If the email does suggest something illegal, then the disclaimer offers no legal protection.
Conclusion: The disclaimer serves no purpose.

It's often best to then try to find the answer for yourself before turning to the answer choices. With this type of question, I think of it as spotting the gap between the conclusion and the premises. To me, one gap stands out. We are told in premise 3 that if the email suggests something illegal, then the disclaimer offers no legal protection. But, what happens if the email doesn't suggest anything illegal? The conclusion makes a broad statement about all emails, not just the illegal ones. Therefore, it is making an assumption regarding the legal emails.

Answer Choices:
(A) is correct. This answer choice points out that the premises did not discuss what happens when an email contains only legal advice. It shows that the conclusion is assuming that a disclaimer is not helpful for these emails either.

(B) is incorrect. The argument does not discuss penalties, so this answer choice is irrelevant.

(C) is incorrect. The argument does not mention people ignoring the disclaimer, so this answer choice is irrelevant.

(D) is incorrect. The argument does not discuss the effect of the emails on the recipients, so this answer choice is irrelevant.

(E) is incorrect. The argument discusses the effect of the disclaimer in the emails. It does not discuss the client's behavior in response to the emails. Thus, this answer choice is incorrect as well.