Do you believe your spouse is hiding assets or sources of income? Do you or your spouse own a business? Have you put inheritance money into a bank account opened during the marriage? Do you or your spouse own a home you owned prior to the marriage? Has your spouse spent money on a significant other? These are just a few of the many reasons you may need to hire a forensic accountant in your divorce case.
While your divorce lawyer is able to review documents in your case and make argument regarding the existence of hidden assets or the value of a company, your divorce lawyer cannot testify in court as to their opinion. A forensic accountant is generally the best person to testify about these things. Forensic accountants are specially trained to do things such as account tracing, valuing businesses, calculating income, and discovering signs of undisclosed assets.
But my spouse already hired a forensic accountant, why do I need one? There are several reasons you should consider hiring your own forensic accountant. Your decision will depend on the facts of your case. One factor to consider is that your spouse’s forensic accountant works for your spouse and their interest. Your forensic accountant will work for you and your interest.
Another reason to consider hiring your own forensic accountant is your South Florida divorce judge should consider the credibility of the testimony when determining an issue or assigning a value to an asset. If your spouse’s forensic accountant’s opinion and testimony is supported by documents, charts, graphs, studies, and other evidence, the judge may find the accountant’s testimony more credible than your opinion. Additionally, if only your spouse owns the asset in question, you may not be able to testify as to the value of the asset.
At Birnbaum, Lippman & Gregoire, PLLC, we have built professional relationships with a number of South Florida forensic accountants and work to find the forensic accountant best suited for our client’s specific need in their divorce case.
- Written by Tiffany N. Mody, Esq.