Three kinds of questions the work answers
Forensic accounting in a divorce usually tackles a few recurring problems. Tracing follows a sum from its source, such as a premarital account or an inheritance, through every transfer to where it sits today, so that a separate property claim can be proved or disproved. A lifestyle analysis compares what the household spent with the income that was reported, which often matters for support when one spouse is self-employed. Income reconstruction rebuilds what a spouse actually earns from business and bank records when tax returns do not tell the whole story. Many matters need only one of these, and scoping the engagement to the right one keeps fees in proportion.
When the other side has a report
A report prepared for your spouse is not the last word. Its conclusions rest on assumptions about which records were complete, which expenses were personal, and which transfers were explained, and each assumption can be examined. Your own accountant can review the work and point out gaps without redoing every calculation from scratch. Ask us before contacting your spouse's accountant directly, and pass along any records you hold that the report appears to have missed. Joint bank statements, household budgets, and prior financial statements given to lenders or landlords are often useful for that comparison.
How the findings are used
Most forensic findings are used in negotiation long before anyone testifies. A clear tracing schedule can settle a separate property dispute without a hearing, and a credible income figure can narrow a support argument to a small range. When a matter does go to trial in New York, the accountant's report is exchanged and the accountant may be questioned about method and sources. In an early conversation we talk about which questions in your case truly need forensic work and what level of review makes sense. We also discuss timing, since the analysis is more useful once discovery has produced the core records.
