Forensic accountants and other experts consulted in Family Court changes
31 Jul 2012Forensic accountants are amongst a wide variety of experts being consulted over proposed changes in the way specialists are used in Family Court. Hot on the heels of an update of the civil experts code, the move is aimed at private law financial remedy proceedings and all other family court procedures where expert evidence would […]
Forensic accountants soon to dip a toe in the evidential ‘hot tub’
31 Jul 2012Experts have given a broad ‘thumbs up’ to evidential ‘hot tubbing’ in Court in experiments that could soon be introduced in trials involving forensic accountants. The new practice, where experts give evidence in the witness box together, is claimed to save costs and allow disagreements between experts to be understood and resolved by the court […]
The use of experts, including forensic accountants, is to be cut back in Family Court
31 Jul 2012The use of experts in Family Court, to include forensic accountants, is to be curbed under new UK Justice Ministry proposals. As a report by Mr Justice Ryder on the operation of child proceedings is published, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, warns that too many experts are being wastefully used, particularly in child proceedings. […]
Forensic accountants unlikely to be caught on camera
11 May 2012UK Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke QC has unveiled plans to allow cameras in Court for the first time in British legal history but it seems unlikely that forensic accountants and other experts will appear live on TV. Mr Clarke said the move was aimed at making justice more publicly accessible than ever before when television […]
Forensic accountants key to a six million pound ‘fish scam’ confiscation hearing
24 Apr 2012Illegal fish catches cost nearly fifty million pounds in lost revenue, according to forensic accountancy evidence being considered by the High Court in Edinburgh. In a case that has become known as the ‘black fish’ scam, prosecutors are claiming that the company that helped quota dodging boat skippers land undeclared fish earned more than […]
Firm mounts fightback after forensic accountants uncover scandal
22 Apr 2012Shareholders at global camera giant, Olympus, have voted in a new board after forensic accountants in Japan uncovered a one billion pound scandal involving the hiding of losses going back over twenty years. The company had nominated new members to the board after all its previous team quit in the wake of the scandal, […]
Watch out there’s a forensic accountant about !!
11 Apr 2012Judges and forensic accountants appear to be the professionals to watch for when it comes to keeping a close eye on business expenses, according to an article in the Irish Times on the latest consumer gadgets. It describes one expenses tracking app for iPads and iPhones in particular and calls on the consumer to […]
Row breaks out over allegations that corruption investigation lacked forensic accountancy evidence
23 Mar 2012A row has broken out over allegations by former Irish Prime Minister Bertie A’Hern that an anti-corruption tribunal report “..had been arrived at without deploying the services of a forensic accountant..” The fomer Taoiseach’s statement came after a panel of enquiry investigating allegations of financial mismanagement concluded that Mr A’Hern had failed to give […]
Recruitment drive unearths the origins of modern forensic accountancy
19 Mar 2012The early origins of forensic accountancy have come to light from an unexpected source, the latest recruitment drive by the FBI to boost the number of investigators employed to follow the money and unearth evidence of modern crimes from terrorism to espionage, large-scale corporate frauds to the investigation of other complex financial schemes. It […]
Forensic accountants on standby to figure out allegations of expert witness perjury
11 Mar 2012Forensic accountants are set to check out the financial impact of allegations that expert witnesses have made false claims that could add up, said a senior judge, to perjury ‘on an industrial scale’. The allegations come amid a long-running battle between insurers and the credit hire companies who supply replacement vehicles to drivers involved […]
Forensic accountants land a big fish
07 Mar 2012Forensic accountants, working with police and officers from industry regulator Marine Scotland, have caught a fish scam on a grand scale. In what has been described by investigators as a widepsread and sophisticated fraud, forensic accountants followed the money trail and discovered tens of millions of pounds were unaccounted for. Over three years, seventeen skippers […]
NIFA member gets to grips with money laundering
14 Feb 2012In the latest crackdown on suspected money laundering, officers from HM Revenue and Customs have raided a canal boat moored in the centre of Leeds and arrested a sixty four year old man in a joint operation with police and the UK Border Agency. The man, named as Richard Williams, has been bailed to return […]
‘Clever accountants help the super rich dodge tax’ says a BBC investigation
11 Jan 2012A BBC investigation has alleged that ‘technical wizardry by clever accountants’ is helping the super rich to dodge tax. The investigation by Radio 4 consumer programme ‘You and Yours’ centred on a call by Prime Minister David Cameron for HM Revenue and Customs to get tough with rich people and companies who employ, in his […]
Forensic accountants to face giving ‘paperless’ evidence in Court
04 Dec 2011The Crown Prosecution Service is to experiment with ‘paperless’ criminal trials as lawyers in selected Courts are given laptops and electronic tablets. The plan could mean expert witnesses including forensic accountants giving evidence electronically rather than being questioned using large bundles of documents. The moves comes as the CPS tries to cut its budget by […]
Forensic accountant uncovers suspected Church fraud
21 Nov 2011A forty-seven year old woman has been arrested on suspicion of fraud after a forensic accountant found around ten thousand pounds of parishioners’ money had gone missing from a Devon church. Devon & Cornwall Police have launched an investigation into the allegations which relate to incidents between 2005 and 2011 at St Boniface’s Church in […]
Forensic accountants campaign against Government legal aid fee cuts
15 Nov 2011Forensic accountants are among a wide range of experts who have launched a campaign for a judicial review of a Government decision to force through caps on expert fees in publicly-funded cases before the Family Court. The organisation, known as the Consortium of Expert Witnesses to the Family Court, say that the action will focus […]
Witness fees ‘row’ hits leading UK accountancy firm
08 Nov 2011The Government of the Channel Island state of Jersey has claimed that a leading accountancy firm billed inappropriately for the cost of attending a hearing that was set up to examine the costs of a state enquiry into child abuse on the island. Deputy Trevor Pitman said his Education and Home Affairs sub-panel received a […]
Isle of Man tax haven more open thanks to forensic accountants
13 Oct 2011Forensic accountants, economists and lawyers at the heart of an organisation campaigning against tax havens have praised the Isle of Man Government for their efforts to make money laundering and tax avoidance more difficult. The Tax Justice Network (TJN) says the island has moved down its secrecy league to thirty-sixth position because it has joined […]
Forensic accountants help uncover theft of charity money
07 Oct 2011Howard Rose (c) BBC News A sixty-three year old charity administrator is serving a fifteen month jail term after he admitted stealing more than seventy six thousand pounds from a children’s charity. York Crown Court was told that forensic accountants working with police officers uncovered evidence that Howard Rose from The Village, Earswick […]
Forensic accountants in energy price investigation
04 Oct 2011UK energy industry regulator Ofgem has called in forensic accountants as it steps up its investigation into pricing by the big six suppliers. The action has been prompted by EDF Energy’s decision to put up its gas prices by 15.4 per cent and electricity prices by 4.5 per cent from 10th November. It is the […]
Accountancy giant denies allegations that it missed US mortgage fraud
03 Oct 2011A leading international accountancy firm is facing allegations that it did not use sufficient forensic skills to detect fraud while auditing an American mortgage company that went under in the US housing crash. Complaints have been filed in a Florida Court against Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.(DTT) alleging that the fraud went undetected over a seven year […]
Forensic accountants could face being caught on camera in court
06 Sep 2011In her address to both Houses of Parliament, the Queen has announced that television cameras will be allowed to film in Court for the first time in Britain. Its part of the detailed programme of legislation proposed for the coming year. This is the culmination of a long-running campaign which was given fresh impetus, earlier […]
UK audit industry faces competition investigation
31 Jul 2011After much discussion, consumer watchdog, The Office of Fair Trading, has decided to call for an independent inquiry into the audit industry following criticism of the actions of four of Britain’s largest accountancy firms. The OFT started to examine the industry after allegations of poor quality published accounts and conflicts of interest against Deloitte, KPMG, […]
MPs criticise the taxman for poor customer service
31 Jul 2011Within days of admitting under-ordering paper for tax statements, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has once again been forced to apologise, this time for poor customer service. The criticism came from the Treasury Select Committee of MPs, who concluded that dissatisfaction with the taxman was at such a level that there was a risk of […]
Self assessment paper problems no bar to accurate tax payments
28 Jul 2011Around half a million self-employed taxpayers are being given an extra two months to make their July tax payment because of an error by the UK tax authorities. It’s been revealed that Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs did not order enough special paper to meet the demand for printing statements confirming the amount of tax […]