Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Showing 273–288 of 384 results
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Forensic investigations – How phased engagements control costs, scope
May / June 2008
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 787
Abstract: A phased engagement breaks down the scope and time frame of a forensic accounting investigation into steps, which are predetermined by the attorney, client and accountant. As this article discusses, each stage comes with its own set of deliverables, making it easier to manage time and costs. Results are based on limits, also of the attorney’s design, which keep the investigation process from going on longer than it needs to. (Updated 8/31/12)
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Are alternate estate valuation dates on the way?
September / October 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 477
Abstract: The IRS has issued new proposed regulations on the election of alternate valuation dates for estates. If implemented, they could significantly affect the availability of alternate valuation dates when the value of an estate decreases after death. This article discusses Internal Revenue Code Section 2032(a), which allows executors to elect to value an estate on the date that’s six months after the date of death.
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Finding and preventing procurement fraud
September / October 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 728
Abstract: Purchasing departments can be fraud hotbeds. Without strong fraud control measures, companies can easily fall victim to fictitious vendor, kickback and other procurement schemes. This article describes red flags to look for internally, including payments to vendors that have been invented by employees, and also discusses preventive measures.
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Another one bites the dust – Tax court rules against FLP
September / October 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 594
Abstract: A family limited partnership (FLP) can be a viable tax-advantaged method of handling assets — but only if it’s established and administered correctly. This article looks at an FLP that the IRS successfully challenged. It explains some of the specific factors that led the Tax Court to conclude that the decedent’s asset transfers were not the bona fide sales that would have qualified the FLP for favorable tax treatment.
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House of sand – “Speculative” lost profits damages crumble in court
September / October 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 984
Abstract: Lost profits damages may seem straightforward. However, they’re anything but that when valuators must base their calculations on the projected profits of a new business. This article looks at one recent California case that illustrates how such a claim can crumble upon examination. The defendant won the case, but, as a result of its weak evidence to support its projected profits, saw its lost profits damages award severely slashed. A sidebar notes a similar fate regarding punitive damages.
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Up close and impersonal – Expert interviewers get face-to-face with financial fraud
July / August 2008
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 701
Abstract: The key to uncovering or confirming financial fraud often lies in one-on-one interviews. As this article explains, skilled interviewers trained in fraud detection know how to spot fraud warning signs, detect deception and pin down suspicions when talking with suspects and their co-workers. Attorneys and their clients may only get one chance for an initial employee interview, so it’s essential they make sure it’s effective. (Updated 8/31/12)
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Unreliable data could doom your next divorce case
July / August 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 490
Abstract: This article examines a recent divorce dispute that illustrates how unreliable data can undermine an expert’s estimate. When a divorcing couple disagreed about the value of the business owned by the husband and his brother, the husband’s expert lowered his final estimate after making calculations based on the brother’s forecast. But an appeals court decided that a valuation “based on an off-the-cuff forecast by a nonexpert” didn’t provide a more accurate value than that generated exclusively from historical figures.
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When the cupboard’s bare – How fraud experts prove inventory theft
July / August 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 717
Abstract: Inventory fraud is notoriously difficult to find and document. So if a client suspects an employee of stealing inventory, it’s important to get a fraud expert involved as quickly as possible. As this article notes, the expert may discover that goods have simply been misplaced. But if fraud is involved, experts look for irregularities in journal entries, vendor invoices and purchase orders, and they work with the company to confirm physical inventory.
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Copyright infringement damages: Doing the math
July / August 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 541
Abstract: Technological leaps and bounds made in the past decade have opened up a virtual playground for copyright infringers. But they may find themselves liable for significant damages down the road. This article talks about the potential liability under the Copyright Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the different approaches courts have used to compute losses resulting from infringement.
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Calculating lost profits – Do post-breach conditions matter?
July / August 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 984
Abstract: Recently, some breach of contract defendants have argued that poor market conditions subsequent to the alleged breach undermine plaintiffs’ claims for lost profits. This article looks at one lost-profits case in which the court didn’t agree, noting the “traditional rule” that lost profits damages are measured at the time of the breach. A sidebar discusses the distinction the court made in this case between direct lost profits and collateral lost profits.
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Why companies need unscheduled fraud audits
May / June 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 645
Abstract: Because regularly scheduled audits give cheating employees time to hide their crimes, auditors typically don’t find occupational fraud schemes. That’s where unscheduled fraud audits come in. This article explains fraud detection methods and how surprise audits can both detect and deter employee theft.
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Thumbs up – Court takes business valuation guide’s advice
May / June 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 674
Abstract: Courts often expect business valuation experts to rely, at least in part, on the value of comparable entities when making their calculations. But in late 2011, the California Court of Appeals allowed a business valuation based on “rules of thumb” multiples, rather than comparables. As this article shows, an expert applied a 42% multiplier to the plaintiff’s physical therapy business; but the appeals court, following a business reference guide, supported a 100% multiplier, citing various marketability factors and the business’s health.
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When is ESI production an undue burden?
May / June 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 529
Abstract: Electronically stored information (ESI) has moved to the forefront of discovery. Yet some attorneys still struggle with ESI production, including the rules for opposing a request. This article looks at a recent federal district court case illustrating just how high the hurdle can be to prove undue burden. When the defendant company didn’t assert any specific objection to the plaintiff’s request for production of documents, but produced the requested ESI in PDF format, it learned that that wasn’t sufficient.
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Business interruption claims – Provide evidence of lost sales — not just lost production
May / June 2012
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 930
Abstract: Whether caused by negligence, breach of contract, terrorism or “acts of God,” the temporary interruption of a business can be financially damaging. When a company tries to recoup its losses from its insurer or the responsible party, it needs solid, comprehensive expert testimony — or it risks losing its claim. This article examines a case in which a metals manufacturer sued its insurer when, following equipment failure, it wasn’t satisfied with the progress of its claim for losses. But its case suffered when it didn’t identify existing or potential sales, or produce evidence showing it could sell existing inventory. A sidebar shows how CPAs calculate lost sales.
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Fraud in the footnotes – Omitted financial statement disclosures often tell tales
May / June 2008
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 741
Abstract: Omissions in the footnotes of financial statements may distort assets, revenues, liabilities and expenses. Such distortions can prove relevant to a range of legal matters, including shareholder disputes, D&O liability, and mergers and acquisitions. This article lists common types of fraudulent omissions and explains how forensic accountants unearth critical information. (Updated 3/31/12)
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E-mail evidence: Handle with care
January / February 2008
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 620
Abstract: E-mail has assumed a prominent evidentiary role in all types of litigation. Proper handling of e-mail evidence is critical — the consequences of improper handling can range from sanctions to adverse jury instructions to devastating damages awards. To avoid these consequences, readers are encouraged to engage a forensic accounting expert who knows where to find hidden evidence and protect it from tampering. (Updated 3/31/12)