Companies engaged in financial statement fraud sometimes use creative phrases to legitimize or cover up what they’re doing. Examples include: Aggressive accounting – We’re following the rules, but pushing the limits to make the financial statements look as good as possible. Earnings management – We’re doing our best to “manage” …
Companies rely heavily on reports about questionable behavior from employees, customers, vendors, or other outside parties. Tips are the most common way that fraud is detected by companies, so any credible tip should be taken very seriously. How does a company evaluate the credibility of a tip? Generally, it does …
If you’re familiar with the process of a financial statement audit, you know all about audit work programs. They’re basically the checklists and guides that auditors use to make sure they follow all the required steps for auditing the financial statements. Because these audits are fairly standardized, the work programs …
The manipulation of a company’s financial statements does not occur as often as asset misappropriation schemes like payroll fraud, check kiting, or inventory theft. And the losses from financial statement fraud aren’t readily apparent to most people. When money is stolen directly (asset misappropriation), it’s easy to see what the …
When an IRS auditor or criminal investigator suspects that a taxpayer has unreported sources of income, he or she looks for ways to calculate that unreported income. One way is the net worth method of proof. Forensic accountants and fraud investigators can use the same method to calculate unreported income …
After management becomes aware of a potential fraud and decides that a fraud investigation is necessary, the process of creating a team, mapping the investigation plan, and requesting information begins. An organized approach is the best way to ensure that all facets of the investigation flow smoothly, that staff is …
After a fraud investigator is done with her work and has issued the expert report, company management and retained attorneys must decide what to do with the information presented. If the case is already in litigation, the use of the report is obvious. If the company has not yet taken …
Most attorneys don’t think about the issue of fraud in companies until a client (or their law firm) is hit by employee theft. It’s simply not one of those issues that is taken too seriously unless huge risks are identified or a crime has already been committed. Until then, fraud …
People who steal from their employers often exhibit telltale characteristics that could tip off management that they’re likely to commit fraud. These characteristics include attitudes on the job, daily work habits, and personal lifestyle issues. A few of these traits alone do not indicate fraud, but the potential for fraud …
I love working on divorce cases where one spouse is trying to hide money. When a business owner has a cash business and is getting divorced, sometimes the income coincidentally (or not so coincidentally!) drops dramatically. What can we do to investigate that? It’s hard. The business owner knows that …
