The Forensic Accounting Deskbook

Forensic accounting can help family lawyers win cases while at the same time their clients are able to keep money which might otherwise be taken from them in a divorce. This resource explains forensic accounting and business valuation and how to apply them in family law cases. It provides a practice-focused introduction to the core financial concepts in divorce, such as asset identification, classification, and valuation, income determination, expenses, and more.

As economic crimes continue to increase, accountants and law enforcement personnel must be vigilant in expanding their knowledge of ways to detect these clandestine operations. Written by a retired IRS agent with more than twenty years of experience, Financial Investigation and Forensic Accounting, Third Edition offers a complete examination of the current methods and legal considerations involved in the detection and prosecution of economic crimes. Explores a range of crimes Following an overview of the economic cost of crime, the book examines different types of offenses with a financial element, ranging from arson to tax evasion. It explores offshore activities and the means criminals use to hide their ill-gotten gains. The author provides a thorough review of evidentiary rules as well as the protocol involved in search warrants. He examines the two modalities used to prove financial crime: the Net Worth Method and the Expenditure Theory, and presents an example scenario based on real-life incidents. Organized crime and consumer fraud Additional topics include organized crime and money laundering — with profiles of the most nefarious cartels — consumer and business fraud and the different schemes that befall the unwary, computer crimes, and issues surrounding banking and finance. The book also presents focused and concrete advice on trial preparation and specific accounting and audit techniques. New chapters in the third edition New material enhances this third edition, including new chapters on investigative interview analysis and document examination, as well as advice for fraud examiners working on private cases, including the preparation of an engagement letter. For a successful prosecution, it is essential to recognize financial crime at its early stages. This practical text presents the nuts and bolts of fraud examination and forensic accounting, enabling investigators to stay ahead of an area that is increasingly taking on global importance.

Today's demanding marketplace expects auditors to take responsibility for fraud detection, and this expectation is buoyed by such legislation as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Auditing Standard (SAS99), which requires increased performance on the part of the auditor to find material financial statement fraud. Written by three of the best forensic accountants and auditors, Thomas W. Golden, Steven L. Skalak, and Mona M. Clayton, The Auditor's Guide to Forensic Accounting Investigation explores exactly what assurances auditors should provide and suggests alternatives to giving the capital markets more of what they are requiring-greater assurances that the financial statements they rely upon for investment decisions are free of material error, including fraud. It reveals the surprising complexity of fraud deterrence, detection, and investigation, and offers a step-by-step approach to understanding that complexity. From basic techniques to intricate tests and technologies, The Auditor's Guide to Forensic Accounting Investigation is a rich, multifaceted, and fascinating answer to the need for wiser, savvier, better-trained financial statement and internal auditors who are thoroughly familiar with fraud detection techniques and the intricate, demanding work of forensic accounting specialists.

The role of accountants in divorce cases / William J. Morrison and Thomas J. Reck -- Ethical limitations on future services for neutral financial professionals following a collaborative divorce / David C. Hesser -- Complex compensation issues in a divorce / Susan M. Mangiero and Lili A. Vasileff -- Valuing professional practices for divorce engagements : reasonable compensation and excess earnings : hit or myth? / Kevin R. Yeanoplos -- Unreported income and hidden assets / Mark Kohn -- Equitable distribution and community property states / Joyce C. Somerville -- Business owner investigative techniques : a focus on fringe benefits / James F. McNulty -- Factors to consider regarding division of non-marital and marital assets for divorce / Richard A. Campanella and Joseph M. Lo Campo -- Determining economic income for divorce purposes when the spouse owns a closely held business / Bruce L. Richman -- Selection of business valuation experts in a divorce : the attorney perspective / Paul Townsend and Alison Leslie -- Litigating and proving child support in high asset or high income cases : what to do when a heavy hitter is at the plate / Barry A. Kozyra and Judith A. Hartz -- Do court preferences exist in cases of matrimonial dissolution involving the valuation of closely held companies? / James A. DiGabriele and Gabriela V. Simoes.