Introduction
With the latest scandals and business collapses (See appendix B) , the need for forensic accountants is growing in the business, government and accounting fields, but according to Harris, there is a growing need in the legal field as well.
Lawsuits are often complex and can involve financial and legal matters that overlap. The skills of a forensic accountant, with their extensive background and forensic experience, are a “vital resource” to the legal team, and they provide “valuable insight” into financial issues (Harris).
What is a Forensic Accountant?
Forensic accountants combine accounting, auditing, and investigating. They have knowledge in money laundering, insurance claims, asset misappropriation, securities and commodities fraud, bankruptcy fraud, embezzlement, and many more financial areas.
What Does a Forensic Accountant Do?
Forensic accountants utilize their accounting, auditing and investigative skills to determine the validity of an accusation. They investigate a claim, by reviewing the evidence, analyzing the information, interviewing people, and com...
At least 99 percent of the time, forensic science is reliable and deem accurate. Although four experts that matched Brandon Mayfield’s fingerprint to the fingerprint on a bag at the crime scene, they in fact misidentified the evidence and Spanish police found out that the latent fingerprint actually belong to be an Algerian. This shown that forensic experts and attorneys can definitely be wrong; furthermore, it convey that not all evidence presented in the case is subjected to be infallible and there is a possibility for committed error. Leah Bartos, a UC Berkley graduate student with a Journalism degree, conducted an experiment to understand the process of becoming a certified forensic consultant. She had no prior knowledge in the forensic discipline, but became certified after she passed the open book exam and sent ACFET her bachelor degree, resume, and references. The ACFET exam have a 99 percent pass rate; therefore, it is criticized for creditability of its certified graduate and branded a diploma milling organization for-profit. Attorney can argue the weakness of the forensic evidence presented, hence forensic science call for bad science and can definitely be misuse in our adversarial legal
First, what is a forensic analyst? What do they do and why do they need math? Forensic analyst use scientific techniques to solve criminal cases. From finger printing with the help of computers, blood analysis, forensic dentistry, also voice and speech spectrograms and genetics. Forensic analyst use bloodstain patterns in order to tell the story of the crimes. Location of the blood, where it lands and the shape on landing surface reveals the direction the blood was moving and even the force used to wound or murder the victim. Math principles are used to figure out ...
People all around the world are becoming interested in forensic science. Students across the nation are taking courses in this very popular science. Many colleges are adopting classes and majors just for it. Why has this science become so popular? Is it because of the lack of people in the field now, and the overwhelming job opportunities that come with a degree in forensic science? Is it because the field is so interesting, and catchy that everyone is flooding to be in the programs? Or is the recent growth of this field due to the numerous television and media coverage of the subject? One thing is for sure, people really are starting to get interested in this field, and it is getting bigger by the second.
to seek justice, a Forensic Accountant can be utilized to help with recovering the damages caused
Perri, J.D., CFE, CPA, F. (2011, January/February). White-collar crime punishment too much or not enough?. FRAUDMAGAZINE, Retrieved from http://www.all-about-forensic-science.com/support-files/white-collar-crime-punishment.pdf
Forensic science is a fascinating subject and one that offers a broad range of careers, including evidence custodians, criminalists, document examiners, firearms/toolmark examiners, forensic laboratory technicians, latent print examiners, and photo technicians—just to name a few (Genge 276). Some jobs require extensive college classes, while others offer the opportunity to learn on the job. N. E. Genge’s book kept me mesmerized, and I read the entire book at one sitting. It was so interesting that if I were just beginning my college journey, I would be sorely tempted (based upon what I read in this particular book) to pursue a career in forensic science—even if it meant that I had to take Pre-Calculus--and I dislike Math!
Accounting ethics has been difficult to control as accountants and auditors must keep in mind the interest of the public while that they remain employed by the company they are auditing. The accountants should take into account how to best apply accounting standards when company faces issues related financial loss. The role of accountant is crucial to society. They serve as financial reporters to owe their primary constraint to public interest. The information provided is critical in aiding managers, investors and others in making crucial economic decisions. An accountant is responsible for any fraudulent financial reporting. Some examples of fraudulent reporting are:
When I hear the word ‘Forensic’ the idea and image of a homicide investigation in which evidence gathered is analyzed at a laboratory to determine ‘who done it’. Shows like CSI, Bones, Law and Order depicts the forensic aspect in their broadcast. Being a registered nurse, another thought comes to mind when hearing the term ‘forensic’. I like to watch Dr. G medical examiner on the Discovery channel. That is a reality show regarding investigative research on how a person died. This is done by performing an autopsy and analyzing the pathological reason for a death to determine if foul play was involved. However, I rarely placed the thought that accounting can have a forensic aspect, too. I was always under the impression that auditors were the forensic accountants. Internal Revenue Agents to audit income tax filings to make sure all income are reported, and deductions have receipts as supporting evidence. Certified Internal Auditors to look at business operations and financial statements within a corporation to make sure internal controls are in place, financial statements are properly recorded, and government regulations have been met. External auditors perform audits for SEC compliance and to attest that the company is in good standings to ensure protection of the public interest. These auditors, in essence, would be able to detect fraud in their job when reviewing audit trails and documentations. Needless to say, I my conception have been construed. There is a whole new field of accounting that is on the rise, which specifically deals with fraud detection. This is called Forensic Accounting. This area sparked my interest.
Accounting is basically a service activity. Its purpose is to provide quantitative information that principally used by the managers, investors, tax authorities, and other decision makers to make the financial decisions within companies, organizations, and public agencies. Accounting is also widely known as the “language of business.” An accountant measures, communicates, and interprets financial activities. They prepare financial statements or reports for individuals, businesses, government agencies, or other non-profit organizations. They use the accounting systems to categorize the expenses and income to the typical groups. They also keep tract of the money received or paid out to see if the transactions are accurate and complete. Accountants are familiar with the computer operation. They use the computer...
... associated to civil disputes. Forensic accountants are also identified as fraud investigators, investigative accountants, forensic auditors or fraud auditors.Forensic accountants are also increasingly playing more proactive risk reduction roles by devising and performing extended procedures as part of the statutory audit, acting as consultants to audit committees fraud deterrence engagements, and aiding in investment analyst research.
ABSTRACT: The quantity of accounting fraud cases keeps on rising. Fraud is a consistent thing that will reliably be around, and in a bigger number of routes than just a single. An extensive apportionment of organizations out there fighting fraud, either from within the organization, or from outside the organization. Knowing how to manage this is essential for an organization to be productive over an extended period of time. The investigation regarding the matter of accounting fraud will utilize sources from the web and the DeVry School Library.
At a glance, accounting might appear as a repetitive cycle of preparing and examining financial statements. However, a brief exposure to accounting has taught me how chaotic it can be for accountants. An accountant captures and represents the information of businesses. By reviewing financial operations, an accountant helps a business run efficiently. This profession can be intellectually stimulating and rewarding. After learning about accounting, I cannot help but be interested and desire to work toward a degree in accountancy. In my studies, I have learned accountants require a plethora of qualities to be successful. And to mature from a student to a professional, I must resolve to strengthen my weaknesses. There is much I must learn and achieve, but a degree in accounting is well worth the time spent.
The evolution of auditing is a complicated history that has always been changing through historical events. Auditing always changed to meet the needs of the business environment of that day. Auditing has been around since the beginning of human civilization, focusing mainly, at first, on finding efraud. As the United States grew, the business world grew, and auditing began to play more important roles. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, people began to invest money into large corporations. The Stock Market crash of 1929 and various scandals made auditors realize that their roles in society were very important. Scandals and stock market crashes made auditors aware of deficiencies in auditing, and the auditing community was always quick to fix those deficiencies. The auditors’ job became more difficult as the accounting principles changed, and became easier with the use of internal controls. These controls introduced the need for testing; not an in-depth detailed audit. Auditing jobs would have to change to meet the changing business world. The invention of computers impacted the auditors’ world by making their job at times easier and at times making their job more difficult. Finally, the auditors’ job of certifying and testing companies’ financial statements is the backbone of the business world.
An accountant makes sure that the Nation’s firms are run efficiently, the public records are kept accurately, and that taxes are paid properly and on time (“Accountants and Auditors”). Accounting is the study of how a business tracks their income, assets, expenses, and many other things for a period of time. They also do many other things like quality management, tax strategy, and health care benefits management (“Welcome to Careers in Accounting”). An accountant is crucial to the success of a business, without one the business tends to fail.
No matter auditors work with technology or not, the most important thing in process of auditing is evidence. The basic framework for the auditor understands of evidence and its use to support the auditor's opinion on the financial statement. In reaching an opinion on the financial statements, the evidence gathered from the audit procedure is used to determine the fairness of the financial statements and the type of audit report to be issued. The characters of paper audit evidence are: