Forensic Accounting Journal
A forensic accounting journal: plain-spoken notes on fraud, elder financial abuse, lost profits damages and the numbers behind disputes.
84 articles
Forensic accounting
Numbers lie. Here is where to look.
Not always illegally. Not always intentionally. But they lie. Three places to look first when reported profit does not feel right.
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Quality of earnings
What a quality of earnings report tells you
A QoE answers one question: how much of reported earnings are real, recurring and supported by records.
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Fraud
Five signs of embezzlement hiding in ordinary books
Embezzlement rarely looks like theft on paper. It looks like normal activity. These patterns give it away.
ReadFraud
Employee Embezzlement: A Case Study in Detection and Recovery
The principals of a small firm noticed odd transactions, and the trail led to a scheme more than a decade old. Here is how it was built, found and resolved.
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Forensic accounting
The Net Worth Method: Proving Unreported Income
The net worth method proves hidden income by tracking changes in assets, debts and spending. Here is how it works and when it fails.
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Forensic accounting
Bank Deposit Analysis: A Forensic Accountant's Method
Every engagement comes back to one question: what money actually moved? Bank deposit analysis answers it from the bank statement itself.
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Fraud
Lapping Schemes: How Receivables Fraud Stays Hidden
A lapping scheme hides stolen customer payments by covering each shortfall with the next payment. Here is how it works and how to stop it.
ReadFraud
Expense Reimbursement Fraud: Catching Inflated & Fake Claims
Expense reimbursement fraud is less about bad math and more about bad motive. Here is how it hides and what review process catches it.
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Litigation support
Forensic Accountant in New Jersey: What Local Businesses Need
New Jersey businesses and attorneys call when the numbers in a dispute must hold up under cross-examination. Here is what to look for in an expert.
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Fraud
Ghost Employee Schemes: How Payroll Fraud Hides in Plain Sight
The most concentrated fraud I have seen started with one person holding every key. Here is how ghost employee schemes hide, and the one control that stops them.
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Litigation support
Forensic Accountant as Expert Witness: What Attorneys Should Know
The right testifying expert can turn a muddled financial dispute into a clear, defensible story. Here is what attorneys should know before engaging one.
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Fraud
Construction Fraud: Job Costing, Change Orders & Over-Billing
Construction fraud hides in draws, change orders, job costing and subcontractor invoices. Here is where I look when a project runs out of cash.
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