Accounting Malpractice Lawsuits: The Importance of CPAs Seeking Outside Counsel

Accounting Malpractice

When a national accounting firm was sued for its failure to follow generally accepted auditing standards which would have uncovered a scheme that duped the bankers and the purchaser of a small manufacturing company, FSS was hired to investigate the allegations and testify before an arbitration panel. A private equity fund made a stock purchase […]

Accounting Malpractice Lawsuits: The Importance of CPAs Seeking Outside Counsel | Ralph Q. Summerford

Ralph Summerford, president of Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses the importance and benefits of CPAs hiring outside counsel if they are at the center of an accounting malpractice case. He also discusses confusion that CPAs often have surrounding accounting malpractice insurance.

Accounting Malpractice Lawsuits: The Value a CFE Brings to Attorneys | Ralph Q. Summerford

Ralph Summerford, president of Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses the critical value a certified public accountant (CPA) who is also a certified fraud examiner (CFE) can add to an accounting malpractice case for attorneys, whether the attorney is prosecuting or defending an accountant. One of the greatest values a CFE can add is their ability to translate […]

Depreciation & Capital Expenditures – Business Valuations | Kelly Schmid

Kelly Schmid, director of valuation services at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses the process of estimating depreciation expenses and capital expenditures in a cash flow forecast. She also examines how an incorrect estimate can impact a business valuation.

What Are Capital Expenditures & How Do They Depreciate? | Kelly Schmid

Kelly Schmid, director of valuation services at Forensic Strategic Solutions, explains what capital expenditures are (also known as fixed assets). She also discusses the replacement and depreciation of capital expenditures, as well as the common misconception that depreciation and capital expenditures should always be equal in a normalized cash flow forecast.

Conflicts of Interest: Educational Tools for Employers | Kelly J. Todd

Kelly Todd, managing member at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses how conflicts of interest can arise in the workplace and challenges associated with conflicts of interests that employers often face. She also discusses educating employees on conflicts and how to detect conflicts.

The Common Denominator of Corruption: Conflicts of Interest | Kelly J. Todd

Kelly Todd, managing member at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses the close relationship between conflicts of interest and corruption. She also discusses preventative measures that can be taken to minimize opportunities for conflicts of interest to morph into corruption.

Active/Passive Appreciation in Divorce Litigation: Part Two | William C. Dameworth

Active/Passive Appreciation in Divorce Litigation: Part One | William C. Dameworth

Leveraging Social Media in Fraud Investigations – II | Lindsay H. Gill

Lindsay Gill, director of forensic technology at Forensic Strategic Solutions, shares insight into the benefits associated with attorneys hiring forensic investigators to uncover evidence on suspects’ social media accounts. She also discusses how to authenticate the evidence gathered and the methods to do so.

Leveraging Social Media in Fraud Investigations – I | Lindsay H. Gill

Lindsay Gill, director of forensic technology at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses social media and its role as a helpful tool to uncover fraudulent electronic evidence in an investigation. She also describes best practices for forensic investigators to collect, analyze and interpret findings to connect the dots.

What to do When You Suspect Fraud at Your Organization – II | Kelly J. Todd

Kelly Todd, member in charge of forensic investigations, discusses how to handle the alleged perpetrator, including notifying the perpetrator, conducting an admission-seeking interview and restricting the wrongdoing employee from company access. She also notes the importance of notifying your insurer when you think you might have fraud occurring in your organization.

What to do When You Suspect Fraud at Your Organization – I | Kelly J. Todd

Kelly Todd, member in charge of forensic investigations, discusses the prevalence of fraud in businesses and actions one should take when they suspect fraud in their organization, including assembling a team for the fraud investigation and securing potential evidence.

Accounting Malpractice: When CPAs Miss the Fraud | Leslie P. Littrell

Leslie Littrell, forensic analyst at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses accounting malpractice and the recent increase in claims as well as the importance of fraud education. Ms. Parker cites FSS’ work with Auburn University to develop its forensic accounting courses within its Master of Accountancy program as an effort to help expand the knowledge of fraud […]

Data Analytics with a Focus on Technology | Lindsay H. Gill

Lindsay Gill, director of technology at Forensic Strategic Solutions, reviews the key areas in which technology has changed the landscape of fraud investigation and how data continues to become a growing risk for businesses.

Business Valuation for Private Companies | William C. Dameworth

Bill Dameworth, member in charge of valuation services at Forensic Strategic Solutions, discusses the differences between the valuation of privately-held and publicly-held companies and those focused on profit maximization versus tax minimization.

Employee Fraud Awareness Training | Kelly J. Todd

Kelly Todd, member in charge of forensic investigations, gives fraud prevention tips aligning with the ACFE 2014 Report to the Nations research describing employee fraud awareness training as an extremely effective way to reinforce fraud policies, encourage anonymous tips from whistleblowers and establish compliance.

Fraud in Charitable Non-Profit Organizations | Ralph Q. Summerford

Ralph Summerford, president of Forensic Strategic Solutions, cites recent New York Times statistics to help reveal some reasons for the high frequency of fraud in non-profits, including high turnover, poor management and lack of tax audit enforcement. All of these issues make it increasingly difficult for the IRS and law enforcement to uncover and prosecute […]

28th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference in Nashville — Like a Fine Wine | Ralph Q. Summerford

The premier annual conference for anti-fraud professionals just concluded in Nashville at Music City Center. Nashville has every reason to beat its chest about this new venue — it is just fantastic. It’s as good as, if not better than, any conference center in any major city across the country.

Show Your Work | Leslie P. Littrell

With the increase in accounting malpractice claims being filed today, it is of utmost importance that attorneys advise their clients on how to act in anticipation of litigation rather than being forced to react. It is becoming more a question of when than if auditors will be sued by one or more of their clients at some point during their career, and they need to be prepared at all times.

Accounting Malpractice Is a Growth Industry | Ralph Q. Summerford

CPA’s have close relationships with their clients (especially in smaller accounting practices) and rightfully so. Who else is better to understand their client’s financial and business affairs than their trusted CPA? And the relationship generally remains close…