Background of Forensic Accounting

The term forensic is initially associated with legal medicine and with those who practice it, as most people identify this word with autopsy and pathology. Forensic Accounting has existed for a long time, and today its protagonism is undoubted as the entire community recognizes the importance of the role it plays in society and the long road that still has to go.

Ever since its founding in 2001, by Dee Studler and Krista Doyle, Studler Doyle has been regarded as a one of the top forensic accounting companies that provides a complete range of forensic accounting solutions. Studler Doyle offers the services of highly-experienced investigating and forensic accounting experts who have a sharp eye for detail when it comes to investigating and analyzing specific accounting situations.

Forensic accounting can be defined as the science of obtaining and presenting financial information in a form that will be accepted by a part of jurisprudence against the perpetrators and those responsible for the economic crime. Forensic accounting involves the application of skills researchers and analytics with the purpose of solving financial problems in a way that meets the norms required in the courts of law.

The experienced team of Studler Doyle comprises investigation professionals, data mining and forensic experts, examiners of fraud and fraudulent activities, interviewers of witnesses and testifiers, CPAs, and professionals who are good at collecting and documenting evidence and facts.

Who may need the services of a Forensic Accountant?

Forensic Accountants combine their accounting knowledge with investigative skills in various litigation support and investigative accounting settings. Forensic Accountants are employed by public accounting firms’ forensic accounting divisions; by consulting firms specializing in risk consulting and forensic accounting services; or by lawyers, law enforcement agencies, insurance companies, government organizations or financial institutions.

Today the services of a Forensic Accountant can be requested both in the private and public sectors. The largest employers of such services in the United States are attorneys for litigation cases or simply to protect the confidentiality of the investigation under the privilege called “Attorney Client Workproduct”. This privilege allows the investigation to be carried out without said documents becoming documents of general knowledge.

Some of the users of such services include:

• Companies generally have internal embezzlement or fraud in which they may need a Forensic Accountant to investigate, quantify, assist in the assembly of a complaint with the authorities and document an infidelity claim to the insurance companies. Also in cases to prevent fraud in a more proactive but not reactive way.

• Some governments in Latin America and the Caribbean which lack the expertise to investigate, quantify, document fraud, and recover assets lost to crime, waste, or money laundering. Recovery is key for developing countries and there are legal cooperation treaties between countries as a tool to carry out such recovery.

• Insurance companies generally require such services to quantify and document claims for consequential damages or lost profits, inventories, claims for infidelity or theft, errors and omissions, civil liability, etc.

• Lawyers rely on Forensic Accountants to quantify and document a case before an arbitration court or before the ordinary or criminal jurisdiction as the case may be. On several occasions experts testify and offer their concepts in written and verbal form. Some of these cases include breaches of contracts, disputes in corporate acquisitions, corporate valuations or in the evaluation of concepts by other experts.

• Forensic Accountants are also used by auditors, tax auditors, or audit committees as an extension to a certain specific part of the audit when auditors need support or suspect fraudulent activity.

Studler Doyle forensic accounting professionals include Certified Fraud Examiners (CFEs) and those who are Certified in Financial Forensics (CFFs) - individuals who are experienced at analyzing, interpreting and presenting complex financial issues in a clear and usable format. Forums have included courts, arbitration panels, investigative agencies, law enforcement, and regulatory bodies.