1. TOPICS

Forensic and valuation services

What’s your fraud IQ?

How well do you know how to prevent, detect, and respond to data breaches? Find out in this month’s Fraud IQ quiz.

How to price an owner’s interest in a CPA firm

Many accounting firms are facing a daunting challenge paying for partner retirements. Long-standing buyout agreements often aren’t calibrated for today’s demographic and market realities. This article shows how firms can assess and adjust the terms and types of buyout agreements to facilitate successful ownership transitions.

Surviving on cross-exam: Tips for expert witnesses

Understanding the cross-examiner’s objectives can help an expert witness prepare to take the stand. It is not difficult to identify foundational principles that, if properly understood and applied, allow you to “survive” cross-examination. Here are seven tips for forensic and valuation services accountants who serve as expert witnesses. Understand the

Lessons from an $8 million fraud

Nathan J. Mueller’s fleecing of his employer, a financial services giant, is noteworthy because of the amount of money stolen, the many years the embezzlement lasted, and the internal control weaknesses that made the scheme possible. This article examines how the crime was committed and what organizations can do to protect themselves from similar losses.

What’s your fraud IQ?

Do you know how to spot the red flags of a fraudulent transaction? Can you evaluate the warning signs? Find out in our Fraud IQ quiz.

Big Data tops issues facing forensic and valuation accountants

Electronic data analysis, also known as “Big Data,” is the most pressing issue that forensic and valuation services (FVS) accountants expect to face in the near future, according to survey results released Tuesday by the AICPA. A quarter of respondents to the 2014 AICPA Survey on International Trends in Forensic

New mentoring program helps CPAs interested in CFF credential

The AICPA established the Certified in Financial Forensics Mentor Program, which is designed for AICPA members interested in developing their skills and business practices in forensic accounting through the help of more experienced forensic professionals. CPAs who apply to the program will be paired with mentors who hold the AICPA’s

Four factors that will influence the L.A. Clippers’ sale price

Three quantifiable factors will influence the sale price of the Los Angeles Clippers—and one more will trump them all, business valuation (BV) experts say. The Clippers have been the talk of the sports world for the past couple of weeks after media outlets began airing a tape of racist comments

AICPA, CPA Canada to collaborate in forensics, technology advisory services

Members of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada) will have access to a broad portfolio of specialized information through the AICPA Information Management and Technology Assurance Section and its Forensic and Valuation Services Section. Under an agreement announced Friday, CPA Canada members can join those sections and will

Kelly Richmond Pope, CPA, CGMA, Ph.D.

My father (Tyronza R. Richmond) always encouraged me to major in accounting. He was business school dean at North Carolina Central University in Durham, N.C., for 10 years and chancellor from 1986 until 1992. I took my first accounting course as a ninth-grader at Charles E. Jordan High School in

IRS oversight of CPAs who provide valuation services

Under Sec. 6695A, enacted by the Pension Protection Act of 2006, P.L. 109-280, appraisers may face monetary penalties for appraisals that lead to substantial and gross valuation misstatements on returns. This section is intended to provide greater assurance that all appraisers and appraisals meet a minimum threshold of qualification. These

How to value a CPA firm for sale

One of the key components of a CPA succession plan is the sale or transfer of the retiring CPA’s ownership interest. How is the value of that interest determined? In most circumstances, the value of an owner’s interest is different when selling to an external buyer than it is in

Q&A: Top issues in business valuation

Business valuation experts have been practicing in an evolving landscape for the past several years. New standards, changing technology, and an aging population are all playing a part in effecting changes. The JofA organized a round-table discussion of the important issues affecting CPAs who advise clients on business valuation matters.

AICPA asks Congress to block change in DOL fiduciary rule for ESOP appraisers

The AICPA has endorsed legislation designed to block any proposal from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) that would change the definition of “fiduciary” as it applies to the valuation of employee stock ownership plans (ESOP). The DOL in recent years has sought to expand the definition of a fiduciary

Gifts-in-kind: What are they worth?

A number of investigative articles have been written by the media and charity watchdog agencies questioning the valuation of gift-in-kind (GIK) contributions received by not-for-profit entities (NFPs). These articles identify various approaches to valuing GIKs, focusing on the large disparities between conclusions reached by NFPs, and questioning the application of

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Why cybercriminals are targeting CPAs

This free report expands on the most commonly found scams, why education and specialized IT knowledge help to lessen security vulnerabilities, and why every firm should plan carefully for how it would respond to a breach.

PODCAST

How tax reform — and Excel — are changing the CPA Exam

Mike Decker, the vice president of examinations at the AICPA, discusses changes being made to the exam as a result of tax reform — and about how Excel will now be available for use on the test.