This program is designed to help lawyers gain a working knowledge of important issues involving accounting as they relate to the practice of law. Most lawyers will need to understand financial reporting regardless of their practice specialty. Accounting issues arise not only in corporate and tax practices, but litigators also rely on financial accounting to calculate damages and drafting legal documents often requires inclusion of accounting terms. Transactional lawyers require an understanding of accounting to properly conduct their due diligence and provide advice to clients concerning disclosure requirements. Lawyers representing businesses are often requested to provide a representation about litigation contingencies for possible disclosure in a company’s financial statements. Numerous cases of financial fraud have made an understanding of how enterprises and their executives manipulate financial reporting important to criminal lawyers.

This program reviews the composition of financial statements and accounting terminology including Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”), International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) and efforts in the United States to converge GAAP and IFRS. The program also provides an overview of how readers of financial statements evaluate reported financial information to assess a company’s financial condition and performance.

The program also reviews the auditor’s responsibility to detect fraud, litigation of accounting malpractice claims and other issues facing the accounting profession. The final session discusses best practices in performing financial accounting due diligence including review for compliance with federal, state, and foreign laws and regulations, and use of accounting terms in legal documents.

Program Contents

• Understanding Financial Statements

• Analyzing the Financial Statement

• Current Issues Facing Accountants and Auditors

• Drafting Legal Documents Using Accounting Language

• Auditors' Responsibility to Detect Fraud, Corporate Investigations and Accounting Malpractice Litigation

Program Faculty

David L. Evans, CPA, Esq. (Chair, Moderator and Speaker)
Martin, Shudt, Wallace, DiLorenzo, & Johnson
—Troy

William F. Chandler, JD, CPA/ABV, CFA, ASA
Managing Director
Spectrum Consulting Partners, LLC
—New York City

Jeffrey R. Klahr, CPA
LCS&Z, L.L.P.
—Latham

Mary E. MacKrell, CPA
LCS&Z, L.L.P.
—Latham

William A. Zeronda, CPA
LCS&Z, L.L.P.
—Latham

Total MCLE Credits 7.0
Ethics MCLE Credits 1.0

This archived webcast is a video online program that you will view and listen to on your computer screen.