Can I sue a tax preparation company for losing my 1098-T?

Before you decide to sue someone, your first question should always be, "What are my damages?" If you have no bills, costs, fines, or other monetary damages as a result of the tax preparer losing a form, then there is no reason to sue. If you do have any damages, then you need to assess how much and whether it's worth bringing a lawsuit. Form 1098-T is filed with the I.R.S. by your educational institution. Therefore, you can contact the I.R.S. and order your wage and income transcript, which will include the Form 1098-T that was filed. If one was never filed with the I.R.S. and the educational institution doesn't have one or refuses to give you one (which they shouldn't), then you would just need proof that you paid tuition to eligible educational institution. This could be in the form of an invoice, receipt, check, etc. Because you should easily be able to obtain a copy of the Form 1098-T, you don't have any damages for which you could sue. This is a small problem that is easily fixed by doing a little legwork. At best, you could file a tax preparer complaint with the I.R.S., and the I.R.S. may decide to civilly fine the preparer for misconduct, but I don't see where you would have any damages that would warrant filing a civil claim. Lastly, always keep copies of important financial documents. Although tax professionals are supposed to maintain records that you give to them, you always want to insure that you have a copy for your personal records.