How do I become a fraud investigator? What skills does a forensic accountant need? I get asked these questions a lot, so today I’m going to give my thoughts on some of the important qualifications and skills a fraud investigator might have. The educational background of a good fraud investigator …
The divorce financial analysis is one very specific set of services that can be offered by a forensic accountant. The lifestyle analysis is the process of tabulating and analyzing the income and expenses of the parties. The lifestyle analysis is then used to determine the standard of living of the …
Interviewing witnesses and suspects is a critical part of any fraud investigation. There are tons of resources out there to help fraud investigators learn how to be effective interviews. There are books, videos, courses, and certifications. I’m going to quickly cover some of the high points of interviewing here. Fraud …
With thousands of detailed accounting rules, how can there be financial statement fraud? There are areas of the financial statements that rely heavily on the judgment of management. They make estimates and decide how to apply the accounting rules. This leaves the door wide open for abuse. Many accounting entries …
While a financial expert may be retained to proactively complete a lifestyle analysis in a divorce case, one might also be retained to do a rebuttal report focused on the analysis of an expert retained by opposing counsel. The process is no different than if the lifestyle analysis is being …
After more than 25 years conducting fraud investigations, I have learned a lot about fraudsters, their methods, and the companies they work for. Hotlines cut fraud losses in half. Anonymous reporting mechanisms like fraud hotlines decrease the cost of internal fraud. Employees are excellent watchdogs, and are more likely to …
Income tax audits are intimidating whether you are being audited personally or as a business owner. There is a right way and a wrong way to handle an audit by a state or federal taxing authority. It is easy to dig a hole for yourself, but awfully hard to get …
A financial professional can fill two distinct roles in family law cases. He or she can be a consultant who provides analysis and opinions privately to the attorney and client. The consulting expert’s work and conclusions are not intended to be presented in court, and are intended to be of …
By far the most common way that executives manipulate financial statements is through the overstatement of revenue. The reason is simple: It’s the easiest way to improve the appearance of the company’s financial condition. Revenue can be inflated by doing things such as: Booking fictitious sales Holding the books open …
In a typical divorce with one or both of the spouses having traditional jobs and earning middle to upper class wages, the calculation of alimony and child support are pretty easy. States have charts or standard percentages that are applied to the income to figure out how much one spouse …