Litigation Services and Fraud Cases: Perspective of the Forensic Accountant

Abstract

The study examines the role and effect of the forensic accountant’s litigation services in the adjudication of fraud cases. Data was gathered mainly by applying a structured questionnaire to a target sample for respondence, as well as interviewing respondents and noting their responses. The target population included legal practitioners and accountants, both of which were randomly selected; 20 respondents each, based on our set criteria of knowledge of subject matter. Descriptive of the responses was first gotten, after which a reliability test was carried out on our instrument of measurement for which we got 0.78 using Cronbach’s Alpha, confirming the internal consistency of our instrument. We went further to test our hypothesis using a one sample T- Test, which revealed that the forensic accountant’s litigation services does affect the adjudication of fraud cases. The study therefore recommends especially for developing countries like Nigeria, to fully standardize, structure and improve the use of forensic accountants in the adjudication fraud cases as we believe this will increase the chances of getting convictions.

Keywords: Forensic Accounting, Fraud Cases, Litigation, Prosecution, Expert witness, Special Masters, Expert consultant