Forensic Accounting

Insolvency Advisory Accountants are developing an area of expertise that will soon open and dedicate much needed time to Forensic accounting in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra. We are so content on delivering such high quality forensic accounting practices that we are yet to complete building this division although not far away.  Right now you may still call us and we will refer you to one of the experts within our unique panel of Liquidators, trustees, administrators, forensic accountants or tax agents. Insolvency Advisory Accountants is the one stop shop for you and your business to gain help and get the right advice from qualified professionals.  We will always refer you to the correct professional in your time of need whether it be a forensic accountant that specialises in financial crime or someone who can quantify your financial loss simply without all the fuss. Forensic accounting or financial forensics is the specialty practice area of accountancy that describes engagements that result from actual or anticipated disputes or litigation. “Forensic” means “suitable for use in a court of law”, and it is to that standard and potential outcome that forensic accountants generally have to work. Forensic accountants, also referred to as forensic auditors or investigative auditors, often have to give expert evidence at the eventual trial. All of the larger accounting firms, as well as many medium-sized and boutique firms, have specialist forensic accounting departments. Within these groups, there may be further sub-specialisations: some forensic accountants may, for example, just specialise in insurance claims, personal injury claims, fraud, construction, or royalty audits.

Financial forensic engagements may fall into several categories. For examples:

• Economic damages calculations, whether suffered through tort or breach of contract
• Post-acquisition disputes such as earnouts or breaches of warranties
• Bankruptcy, insolvency, and re-organisation
• Securities fraud
• Business valuation
• Computer forensics/e-discovery

Forensic accountants often assist in professional negligence claims where they are assessing and commenting on the work of other professionals. Forensic accountants are also engaged in marital and family law for analysing lifestyle for spousal support purposes, determining the income available for child support and equitable distribution. Engagements relating to criminal matters typically arise in the aftermath of fraud. They frequently involve the assessment of accounting systems and accounts presentation – in essence assessing if the numbers reflect reality. Some forensic accountants specialise in forensic analytics which is the procurement and analysis of electronic data to reconstruct, detect, or otherwise support a claim of financial fraud. The main steps in forensic analytics are (a) data collection, (b) data preparation, (c) data analysis, and (d) reporting. For example, forensic analytics may be used to review an employee’s purchasing card activity to assess whether any of the purchases were diverted or divertible for personal use.