Imagine accumulating years of financial records, such as bank statements as well as tax records, credit card statements, Payroll reports and brokerage statements.
Now you can access technical information.
It is possible that you are unable to locate a solution.
Financial records might not always be readily available, but that doesn’t mean it makes matrimonial matters more complicated. It’s not easy to identify what documents are pertinent and identify when there are essential missing pieces.
Start with the question Not the spreadsheet
Financial discovery may be approached differently by a forensic accountant New Jersey than someone who simply needs to organize documents.
Imagine that the dispute involves the income that is available to provide support. It’s a good idea to go over an income tax report, however business owners or professionals who are highly compensated may receive their compensation in different ways. Compensation, bonuses, salaries, and other forms of compensation can require additional analysis based on the specific circumstances.
If there is a question about assets that may not have been disclosed, other records may be relevant. Transfers, bank activity, spending patterns, and transfers between accounts can help develop an accurate financial picture.
It’s not about collecting every document you can think of. It’s to obtain the records necessary to answer specific financial queries.
Business Ownership Changes the Discovery Process
Privately held companies can be a beneficial addition to the matrimonial search process.
For the business valuation process in New Jersey, you will need financial data. An expert in valuation may need historic financial statements, documents regarding ownership, tax records and other documents depending on the engagement.
Incomplete information could cause problems.
For instance, if you just look at revenue and ignore expenses, it’s not possible to tell the full story of a business’s finances. A single year of performance can also be misleading.
SJS Forensics provides assistance to counsel by identifying documents relevant and assisting in the formulation of specific discovery requests, and scrutinizing documents produced for precision and completeness.
A few financial differences don’t necessarily mean that there’s something buried
Unknown transactions may raise suspicions in divorce proceedings because they’re emotional.
It’s not always easy to determine where a transfer has been made. Unexpectedly large withdrawals may be the result of a typical explanation. However, a seemingly ordinary set of transactions might be worth closer inspection when viewed as a whole.
It is vital to start with an analysis that is objective, as forensic accounting must not start by assuming that there was a violation.
Records should be the first base for an analysis.
Mediation Can Be More Effective with better Information
Financial experts are usually found in courtrooms, but they can be beneficial much earlier. When parties disagree about the value of their business, their income, separate property or any other financial activity that is unusual Clarifying those issues prior to mediation can help determine what’s being argued.
SJS Forensics combines forensic accounting expertise with a settlement-oriented approach and is able to participate in mediation to address complex financial questions.
When testimony is necessary, an expert witness accountant for matrimonial litigation must be able to take the underlying analysis and explain it clearly to attorneys, mediators, judges, and other non-accountants.
The Objective is to Limit the Risk of Uncertainty
A complicated divorce can contain many financial transactions that were accumulated over many years. Financial clarity is not achieved by simply placing records in folders. There is still a need to decide the purpose of the documents in the first place, what’s not yet answered, and which additional information may be necessary.
It’s a benefit that can be realized from an analysis of the financial market that is forensic. It’s not the goal to make divorce complicated by adding more documents. You want to slowly reduce the number of unanswered questions you have in a financial situation which is extremely complex.