Elizabeth Woodward

Article Dean Dorton

The AICPA recently issued a new standard which will apply to all members of the AICPA—not just those that have specialized credentials like Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) or Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV). The Statement on Standards for Forensic Services No. 1 (SSFS1) will be effective for all engagements that the CPA accepts on or after January 1, 2020.

SSFS1 will apply in litigation support and investigation engagements. The term “litigation” includes disputes and all forms of alternative dispute resolution, not just formal litigation. An “investigation” refers to a matter conducted in response to specific concerns of wrongdoing in which the member is engaged to perform procedures, the results of which will help stakeholders form conclusions on the merits of the concerns.

SSFS1 is a big step for the accounting profession. In the last 20 years, forensic accounting has grown and evolved to match the legal community’s expectations. SSFS1 formalizes the best practices identified by industry leaders. Elizabeth Woodward, Dean Dorton Director of Forensic Accounting, serves on the AICPA’s eight-person Forensic and Litigation Services Committee along with Dave Duffus, who is interviewed in an article that explains more.

Read the Full Article

What does this mean for me?

If you hire, or depose, accounting experts you should read SSFS1. You will want to insure that experts you hire know about, and follow, the standard. You will also want to use deposition to make sure the opposing expert is aware of, and followed the standard. If you have questions on the new standard, or its implementation, please contact Elizabeth Woodward or any member of the Dean Dorton Forensic and Business Valuation team.

Article Dean Dorton

Elizabeth Woodward and Nick Lynch recently presented on fraud risk considerations at the University of Kentucky’s National Conference on Equine Law. They covered top 10 considerations specific for equine clients and operations:

  1. Horse farms are often controlled by high net worth absentee owners. Ensure proper controls are in place to mitigate fraud risk in their absence.
  2. Farm management is often passionate about horses, but may lack financial sophistication. Make sure they are treating the farm like a business and implementing proper internal controls.
  3. Employees at farms (and related family offices) may develop a sense of entitlement that allows them to rationalize fraud based on the farm owner(s) lifestyle. (e.g., I give everything to this farm. Why shouldn’t I enjoy a higher lifestyle? They won’t miss the money anyway.) Be aware that this increases the risk of fraud.
  4. Farms may rely on a single employee or small group of employees for all accounting functions. Ensure duties are properly segregated, especially within the cash receipt and disbursement processes.
  5. There sometimes is a lack of transparency in syndicate expenses. Ensure that expenses are being segregated and billed appropriately. Syndicate managers and members should exercise due diligence to see that only appropriate expenses are being captured and billed.
  6. An ethical culture is the cornerstone of a strong internal control environment. Management must set the tone; employees will tend to follow their lead.
  7. Develop proper purchasing procedures, including authorizations, approval thresholds and strong bidding practices.
  8. Credit card usage is a common area of abuse and should be limited to necessary situations. Most expenses should follow the normal check disbursement or expense reimbursement (e.g., travel expenses) processes.
  9. Horse farms often lack formal policies and procedures. Develop formal policies and require employees to review and acknowledge them.
  10. Tips are the most likely source of fraud detection. Consider an ethics hotline to facilitate tips.

Three Themes:

  1. Absentee Owners
  2. High Wealth Families
  3. Passion for Industry

For more information, contact Elizabeth Woodward at ewoodward@deandorton.com or Jen Shah at jshah@deandorton.com.View Elizabeth Woodward’s BioView Jen Shah’s Bio

Article Dean Dorton

Organizations face numerous risks to their success every day including regulatory risk, economic risk, disaster risk, supply-chain risk, and technology risk, just to name a few. Fraud risk is universally one of the risks faced by all businesses, from individually-owned to government entities and every type of business in between. Unfortunately for many organizations, their greatest assets are endangered by their own employees. Those who have been hired to help the organization succeed are potentially the biggest threats to a company.   For the past nine years, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners has studied occupational fraud, the victims, and various methods used to commit these crimes. Between January 2014 and October 2015, 2,410 cases of occupational fraud were investigated in 114 different countries throughout the world. Highlights of the findings include:

  • The total loss caused by the cases in the study exceeded $6.3 billion, with an average loss per case of $2.7 million.
  • Asset misappropriation was by far the most common form of occupational fraud, occurring in more than 83% of cases, but causing the smallest median loss of $125,000. Financial statement fraud was on the other end of the spectrum, occurring in less than 10% of cases but causing a median loss of $975,000. Corruption cases fell in the middle, with 35.4% of cases and a median loss of $200,000.
  • Among the various forms of asset misappropriation, billing schemes and check tampering schemes posed the greatest risk based on their relative frequency and median loss.
  • The median loss for all cases in the study was $150,000, with 23.2% of cases causing losses of $1 million or more.

Tips were the most common detection method in the study, representing 39.1% of cases. Organizations that had reporting hotlines were much more likely to detect fraud through tips than organizations without hotlines (47.3% compared to 28.2%, respectively). Having a hotline in place allows for employers to address a situation early rather than letting it continue and end in the courts. A hotline also eliminates the employee excuse that they had nowhere to turn.   We believe that organizations should make it easy for their employees to report suspected fraudulent activity/theft, misconduct, or unethical behavior. Operating an effective fraud tip function is neither too complicated nor overly expensive. Dean Dorton can provide a safe, secure, and anonymous way to report these concerns 24/7 through our secure fraud hotline service, Red Flag Reporting. By putting this hotline in place, you will convey to your employees that your organization is committed to an ethical culture. As an employer, you will have comfort in that the hotline provides you with a safeguard that may identify employee concerns or complaints before they develop into a crisis situation. Utilizing a third-party expert provider provides your employees with comfort that their concerns will be handled in a confidential and anonymous manner.Download 2016 Report to the Nations

To learn more about our Red Flag Reporting service or how to investigate potential fraudulent activity, contact Elizabeth Woodward (ewoodward@deandorton.com) or Nick Lynch (nlynch@deandorton.com).

View Elizabeth Woodward’s Bio

Article Dean Dorton

We are excited to announce our team of forensic accounting and litigation consulting experts have been chosen as the featured presenters at the National Business Institute’s Forensic Accounting 101 for Attorneys! The program will take place in Louisville, KY on Friday, December 4, 2015 from 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Our team members, David Angelucci, Missy DeArk, John Herring, Nick Lynch, and Elizabeth Woodward will present relevant and pertinent fundamental tools and practical tips to help attorneys, paralegals, business directors, and executives discern financial statements, business valuations, and tax returns as well as indicate potential areas of fraud or other associated risks.

  1. Accounting Key Terms, Definitions and Lingo
  2. Assessing Misrepresentations in Financial Statements (With Real-World Examples)
  3. How to Calculate Damages Like a Forensic Accountant (With Real-World Examples)
  4. Business Valuation – Dissecting Closely Held Entities
  5. Savvy Ways to Locate Hidden Assets, Interests and Income (With Real-World Examples)
  6. Fraud Prevention, Detection and Response (With Real-World Examples)

Register online via the National Business Institute: Forensic Accounting 101 for Attorneys.

In the meantime, do not hesitate to reach out to us at if you have questions. To learn more about how our Litigation and Forensic Accounting team can help you, contact Elizabeth Woodward at ewoodward@deandorton.com or Missy DeArk at mdeark@deandorton.com.

Our consulting team specializes in a range of services for law firms to help your case, your clients, and your firm’s operations. This includes:

  • Expert Testimony
  • Litigation Consulting
  • Matrimonial Disputes (ex: tracing, calculations, income and cash flow analysis)
  • Business Valuation
  • Forensic Accounting
  • Mergers and Acquisitions Analysis
  • Bankruptcy Services
  • Technology Services


View Elizabeth Woodawrd’s Bio

Article Dean Dorton

We are excited to announce that our team of law firm service experts are at the Kentucky Bar Association Convention today through Friday in Lexington! Be sure to stop by our booth to meet our team members and learn more about how our law firm-specific services are beneficial and valuable to you and your clients. Leave your business card for a chance to win an Amazon Fire HD7 and matching case!

Kentucky Bar Association

One of our business valuation experts, David Parks, will be presenting “Business Valuation Issues and Strategies for the Family Law Practitioner” on Friday, June 19 from 11:20 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. as well.

Our law firm services team specializes in a range of consulting and financial services to help your case, your clients, or your firm’s operations:

  • Expert Testimony
  • Litigation Consulting
  • Matrimonial Dispute Services
  • Business Valuation
  • Forensic Accounting
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • Bankruptcy Services
  • Compliance Monitoring
  • Receivership Services
  • Insurance Claims
  • Technology Services
  • Outsourced Firm Accounting

For more information, contact Elizabeth Woodward (ewoodward@deandorton.com) or Missy DeArk (mdeark@deandorton.com).

View Elizabeth Woodward’s Bio

Article Dean Dorton

Did you know tip hotlines have proven to be one of the most effective ways to detect or prevent fraud?  Nearly half (43%) of detected fraud is discovered due to a tip.  Operating without an ethics hotline may be accepting unnecessary risk.  We believe that organizations should make it easy for their employees to report suspected fraudulent activity/theft, misconduct or unethical behavior.

Accounting Today recently published an article, “Best Practices of Employee Hotlines.” This article highlights methods of functionality and internal guidelines as well as employee support, and includes input from our own Nick Lynch. Read the full article here.

Dean Dorton provides employees with a safe, secure and anonymous way to report concerns 24/7 via our ethics/whistleblower hotline – Red Flag Reporting.  Some of the key benefits of this service include:

Fraud Red Flag Reporting

  • We provide live, onsite training from an experienced fraud examiner. A webinar is available for those unable to attend the onsite training.
  • Our hotline allows web reporting and live, 24/7 phone reporting via a toll-free number. We also offer collateral material that helps keep the hotline top of mind, including wallet cards, posters and quarterly emails.
  • Our reports do not go straight from the operator to the client. Our reports first go to an experienced fraud examiner.
  • By putting this hotline in place, you will convey to your employees that your organization is committed to an ethical culture. As an employer, you will have comfort in that the hotline provides you with a safeguard that may identify employee concerns or complaints before they develop into a crisis situation.
  • Utilizing a third-party expert provider provides your employees with comfort that their concerns will be handled in a confidential and anonymous manner.

To put our fraud hotline in action for your organization or for more information about the benefits, contact Nick Lynch (nlynch@deandorton.com) or Elizabeth Woodward (ewoodward@deandorton.com).

View Elizabeth Woodward’s Bio