Forensic accountants use acquired training, knowledge of regulations, and accounting practices to complete financial investigations. Their investigations are then used to discover or substantiate evidence. Forensic accountants can be utilized in many areas such as divorce settlements, expert witness consultation, police and government agencies, insurance claims, finance companies, money laundering, fraud, embezzlement investigations, technical discovery cases and many more areas. With the forensic accounting field having such a diverse realm of opportunity in present time, it had a much simpler beginning in the U.S. With the forensic accounting field seeing such drastic change over the course of history, what changes will we see in the near
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According to Stevenson, forensic accounting was not recognized as a detached practice area separate from auditing until later branching off on its own (Stevenson, 2015). This was a common practice and it worked for some time. Stevenson states that business expansion, complexity, and an increase in the number of lawsuits made it for auditors to serve as forensic accountants as they had in the past (Stevenson, 2015). This led to a division of roles. At this point, Stevenson points out that the primary responsibility of the forensic accountant became litigation consulting services in the courtroom by serving as expert witnesses (Stevenson, 2008). Wiley defines litigation consulting as professional services provided by non-lawyers during the litigation process during legal or regulatory proceedings (Wiley, 44.1). Perhaps one of the most memorable times that a forensic accountant served as an expert witness was in the case against famed gangster Al Capone. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Al Capone was known for various criminal activity ranging from gambling to the murder of seven men, but was finally committed due to his failure to pay income tax and the investigation into it by forensic accountants (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI]. These services would prove extremely valuable in both civil and criminal …show more content…
Today, the forensic accountant must be extremely comfortable with technology and technology continues to change at a rapid pace. This means that forensic accountants must keep up or outpace that trend in order to stay relevant. Stevenson states that accounting and technology are intertwined as most fraudulent activity has an electronic element involved (Stevenson, 2015). Future forensic accountants will have to be fully educated not only in accounting principles, theories, and regulations, but in the technological aspects as well. Computers, mobile technology, network monitoring, missing digital data, cyber extortion, geocaching, and many other IT related issues will go hand in hand with forensic accounting and will have to be heavily incorporated into continual training. Technology will continue to grow, criminals will continue to explore the internet and new technology as a viable option for fraudulent activity. As this occurs, forensic accounting will adapt and grow to accommodate the changes to technology and cybercrime. As Stevenson points out, with the prevalence of cybercrime committed against businesses, forensic accounting is positioned to evolve once again into a new landscape (Stevenson, 2015). Similarly to how the accounting role evolved into separate roles based on the
According to Stevenson, forensic accounting was not recognized as a detached practice area separate from auditing until later branching off on its own (Stevenson, 2015). This was a common practice and it worked for some time. Stevenson states that business expansion, complexity, and an increase in the number of lawsuits made it for auditors to serve as forensic accountants as they had in the past (Stevenson, 2015). This led to a division of roles. At this point, Stevenson points out that the primary responsibility of the forensic accountant became litigation consulting services in the courtroom by serving as expert witnesses (Stevenson, 2008). Wiley defines litigation consulting as professional services provided by non-lawyers during the litigation process during legal or regulatory proceedings (Wiley, 44.1). Perhaps one of the most memorable times that a forensic accountant served as an expert witness was in the case against famed gangster Al Capone. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Al Capone was known for various criminal activity ranging from gambling to the murder of seven men, but was finally committed due to his failure to pay income tax and the investigation into it by forensic accountants (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI]. These services would prove extremely valuable in both civil and criminal …show more content…
Today, the forensic accountant must be extremely comfortable with technology and technology continues to change at a rapid pace. This means that forensic accountants must keep up or outpace that trend in order to stay relevant. Stevenson states that accounting and technology are intertwined as most fraudulent activity has an electronic element involved (Stevenson, 2015). Future forensic accountants will have to be fully educated not only in accounting principles, theories, and regulations, but in the technological aspects as well. Computers, mobile technology, network monitoring, missing digital data, cyber extortion, geocaching, and many other IT related issues will go hand in hand with forensic accounting and will have to be heavily incorporated into continual training. Technology will continue to grow, criminals will continue to explore the internet and new technology as a viable option for fraudulent activity. As this occurs, forensic accounting will adapt and grow to accommodate the changes to technology and cybercrime. As Stevenson points out, with the prevalence of cybercrime committed against businesses, forensic accounting is positioned to evolve once again into a new landscape (Stevenson, 2015). Similarly to how the accounting role evolved into separate roles based on the