Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Showing 321–336 of 384 results
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Putting a value on human capital
November / December 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 555
Abstract: Clients may not immediately think of employees as assets with a financial value, but human capital is a quantifiable — and critical — part of a business’s worth. Companies may need a professional valuator to quantify human capital for a variety of reasons, including litigation. This article discusses three different approaches to doing so.
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Rule 26 amendments – Extending greater work product protections
November / December 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 743
Abstract: The first amendments since 1993 to the expert provisions of Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 26 are scheduled to take effect Dec. 1, 2010. They were proposed largely in reaction to certain practices that critics argued reduced the effectiveness of expert work. This article explains how the new amendments extend work product protections to the discovery of testifying experts’ draft reports — with three critical exceptions.
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Authentication issues: Who creates ESI?
November / December 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 647
Abstract: Like all evidence, electronically stored information (ESI) must be authenticated before a court will admit it as evidence, and one of the threshold steps is establishing its owner/creator. Because electronic documents are often passed around to others for revision, it can be difficult to pin down ESI authorship. This article summarizes an industry group’s research that could help attorneys determine whether a piece of ESI will be acceptable in court.
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New report highlights the importance of antifraud controls
November / December 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 773
Abstract: Employee fraud is one of the most significant threats to profitability — and the recently released report from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners reinforces the severity of the threat. This article looks at some of the report’s findings regarding effective antifraud controls. A sidebar explains why one of the most effective antifraud tools is the surprise audit.
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Reap the benefits of early case assessment
September / October 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 484
Abstract: Attorneys can help clients manage their litigation costs, particularly those related to e-discovery, with early case assessments (ECAs). This article walks through the steps involved in an ECA and discusses how it can help facilitate cost savings. It may seem counterintuitive for an attorney to advise performing an ECA that, ultimately, could limit his or her role in a case. However, clients that know their attorney is fiscally conscious are more likely to be satisfied and return with other legal matters.
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Theory into practice: Benford’s Law finds financial fraud
September / October 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 681
Abstract: Benford’s Law is a relatively old statistical precept regarding the frequency of certain numbers in random data sets. But only in recent years has it become effective in detecting fraud, thanks to technological advances. This article explains how, informed by Benford’s Law, fraud experts use spreadsheet software to identify questionable numbers and suspicious activities. Often, experts spot possible financial manipulation that would be invisible to the naked eye.
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Gift and estate taxes – Backing up valuation discounts
September / October 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 721
Abstract: Regardless of whether tax rates and exemptions change, valuation discounts probably will continue to play a significant role in the ultimate tax liabilities that taxpayers shoulder. Establishing the appropriate discounts can prove complicated, though, particularly when dealing with interests that don’t have a ready market. This article examines the tools valuators use to address this problem, such as discounts for lack of marketability, restricted stock studies, pre-IPO studies, and lack-of-control or minority discounts.
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IRS addresses employment-related settlements and judgments
September / October 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 888
Abstract: As attorneys litigate and settle an increasing number of employment-related lawsuits, certain questions related to the taxability of settlements and judgments commonly arise. A recent IRS memo may clarify some matters for both sides in employment disputes. This article looks at income and employment tax consequences of employment-related settlements and judgments, including the allocation of funds and treatment of back pay and attorneys’ fees. A sidebar shows how to determine the components of a settlement or judgment.
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When the M&A honeymoon is over
July / August 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 741
Abstract: Merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions are notoriously difficult to execute. In some cases, sellers and buyers engage in postclosing disputes over previous financial representations and the company’s selling price. A financial expert with M&A experience can help with areas of dispute — such as earnout provisions — and help attorneys draft discovery requests to uncover audit workpapers, consultants’ reports and other documents that shed light on the target’s accounting policies and practices.
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Time to tighten internal controls
July / August 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 552
Abstract: The recent economic downturn has provided ideal conditions for occupational fraud. Now more than ever, companies need a forensic expert to perform a fraud risk assessment. Forensic experts typically start their risk assessment with five steps recommended by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. This often results in recommendations for internal control upgrades, many of which can be simple and inexpensive.
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The future is now – Court debuts electronic discovery program
July / August 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 655
Abstract: In 2009, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals launched a program that points the way to some potentially significant changes in the discovery process. The goal of the court’s Electronic Discovery Pilot Program is to reduce litigation costs and time brought on by the widespread use of electronically stored information (ESI). The initial set of guidelines requires that litigation participants address and resolve ESI issues early in the process.
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Partial ownership interests – New guidelines shed light on the valuation process
July / August 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 780
Abstract: Business valuators are often retained to value partial ownership interests. In 2009, the American Society of Appraisers adopted nonbinding procedural guidelines to describe the considerations and procedures that may be used to value partial interests in businesses, securities, and other tangible or intangible property. This article looks at the relevant factors in such valuations, while a sidebar lists items that should be considered in an analysis of the expected holding period for an investment.
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Don’t let line-of-credit schemes defraud your client
May / June 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 615
Abstract: Hard economic times typically lead to more “creative” fraud schemes. One that gets little attention, but potentially is extremely damaging, involves a company’s line of credit (LOC) with lenders. Employees who are closely involved in arranging for LOCs or are calculating periodic receivable availability reports are most likely to commit this complicated type of fraud. But forensic experts have several methods at their disposal to detect complicated LOC schemes.
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Valuation expertise is critical when a company is liquidating
May / June 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 612
Abstract: Both financially distressed businesses and buyers considering acquiring a company in bankruptcy require the expertise of an experienced valuator. These experts can help owners make informed decisions about their troubled company’s future and maximize liquidation proceeds. And, as this article explains, valuators can provide buyers with accurate appraisals of bankrupt businesses and their assets.
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Is your appraiser vulnerable to attack?
May / June 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 523
Abstract: Attorneys who rely on professional appraisers should know about some revisions made by the Appraisal Foundation to its 2010-11 Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) — generally considered the performance and ethical standards for U.S. real property appraisers. Under the revised standards, subject appraisers must disclose any current or prospective interest in the subject property or parties involved. This latest USPAP also rewrites the competency rule for appraisers.
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Burden vs. benefit – Court weighs in on inaccessible ESI
May / June 2010
Newsletter: Advocate's Edge / Litigation Support
Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50
Word count: 870
Abstract: Attorneys increasingly face discovery requests for massive amounts of electronically stored information (ESI). Litigation parties generally aren’t required to produce ESI that isn’t “reasonably accessible,” but courts can nonetheless order production on a showing of good cause by the requesting party. When a defendant in one case complained that meeting the plaintiff’s request for archived e-mails would involve poring over 2,500 tapes at a cost of $1.5 million, the court relied on a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure to determine whether the plaintiff had good cause to order discovery. A sidebar discusses this court’s order regarding the discoverability of attorneys’ litigation hold letters.