Instructed by a legal firm acting for an investor to provide expert evidence on the accounting for transactions in the financing of a stage production by Capital Finance Corporation.  The purpose was to identify differences between the actual transactions and the prospectus for the project.

Traced hundreds of dividend payments totalling $1 billion from subsidiaries to parent entities in the complex group structure of a large collapsed multi-services company.  The aim was to determine the quantum of payments that directly or indirectly passed to the ultimate holding company as part of an investigation of intra-company dividend arrangements in a large tax dispute.

Investigated allegations of corruption in the metal recycling industry.  The allegations centred on company management and site managers allegedly receiving kickbacks from suppliers, who were also potentially related parties, in return for overpayments for goods supplied.

Appointed by an international computer manufacturer to investigate the alleged breach of code of conduct policies in one of its businesses arising from allegations of the receipt of corrupt payments from an employee of a service provider.

Undertook a bribery and corruption risk assessment for a telecommunications company to identify areas of potential risk to the business and project managed the implementation of the recommendations to ensure that adequate procedures were put in place to manage the risks identified.

Led the forensic team acting as Independent Expert for a global energy and natural resources business, quantifying class action claims for property damage and consequential losses arising from the interruption of the gas supply to business and domestic users in Victoria following the Longford fire and explosion.

Engaged by a New York law firm to investigate a financial statement misstatement of a publicly-listed retail pharmacy company.  The misstatement had subject to a US Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a shareholder class action.  The US$4 billion restatement was the then-largest restatement in SEC history.

Assisted an organisation undertaking a large energy and natural resource project to examine the management of their large contracts.  The client was proactively seeking advice on their systems and processes in managing approximately 30 contracts with a forecast total spend of $20 billion.  Specific advice provided related to payment verification, change orders and resolution of contract issues which could arise such as overcharging.

Assisted a private investment fund with a dispute following the sale of a business to a major listed Australian company, including detailed data analysis of asset registers, advising on the choice of Independent Expert and preparation of a written submission.

Engaged to analyse key data sets from three governing bodies in the racing industry in Victoria.  The data was compared and combined to analyse key questions on risk and compliance.

Project managed the forensic technology services provided to a pharmaceutical company in relation to an international dispute.  The work involved the ongoing management and leadership of the electronic discovery process for a number of Asian countries.

Assisted the Australian Securities and Investments Commission with the execution of numerous search warrants in order to locate relevant electronic information.

Engaged to assist with the scoping, collection, analysis and reporting of large quantities of electronically stored information for the purposes of responding to potential attention by a regulatory authority.

Engaged to undertake an analysis of electronic documents produced during discovery to determine the identity of suspected electronic storage devices used in the theft of intellectual property.

Investigated a financial statement misstatement made by the Australian subsidiary of a US publicly-listed engineering consulting company that resulted in an investigation by the SEC and the restatement of previously reported results in the US.  It also resulted in an investigation and prosecution of the Australian Managing Director by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

Acted as Independent Expert to assess the business model of a Forestry company and its Managed Investment Schemes.  We reviewed the entity's reliance on monies from new investors to fund on-going costs of existing schemes.

Reconstructed the accounts of a $30 million deceased estate involving several trusts and in excess of 1,000 transactions.  Our work involved the application of trustee law as well as the classification of expenditure items between capital and income and an assessment of the reconstruction of the beneficiary position.

Conducted a fraud risk assessment review of a service sector expense reimbursement process, which included mapping the process, identifying potential areas of fraud risk and recommendations to improve internal controls.

Undertook a high level fraud risk review for a financial institution in the non-bank fixed interest lending market.  The review focussed on the risks associated with lending, debentures and general back office operations.  A number of control weaknesses were identified for which we provided suggestions as to how to improve the controls.

Engaged to provide fraud risk management services to a Commonwealth government agency.  McGrathNicol developed and delivered a fraud awareness training across the Agency, facilitated a fraud risk assessment workshop amongst the Executive and Senior Management team and updated the Agency's Fraud Control Plan. 

Assisted the Administrator of a public automotive parts company to investigate significant events leading up to its administration. We undertook a detailed analysis of documents including electronic records and interviewed senior management to determine if the Corporations Act had been breached and whether insider trading had occurred.

Investigated the misappropriation of $7.5 million of client funds invested in at-call accounts and fixed term deposits.  The  regional manager of an ASX 100 financial institution had engaged in a series of fraudulent transactions over a 18 year period which involved more than 670 unauthorised withdrawals from 61 client accounts.

Investigated the misappropriation of gaming and TAB sales by the co-owner and operator of a pub.  We also conducted a detailed review to investigate the use of business funds to pay for personal expenses including renovations and additions to their home and rental property.

Assisted in-house Internal Audit to investigate inappropriate use of corporate credit cards.  We worked with our client to develop an investigation plan, provided guidance on the most effective way to review information obtained, interviewed the suspect and made recommendations on the appropriate format to report the matter internally and to law enforcement.

Appointed as Independent Expert to quantify the loss of profits of a business whose intellectual property rights had been infringed.  The work required an assessment of damages on an account for profits basis.

Conducted a royalty investigation on behalf of the Canadian licensor of the Anne of Green Gables series to ensure royalties were appropriately calculated and reported by the Australian distributor.

Acted as an investigating accountant on behalf of the owners of an international hotel group, following allegations of improper financial conduct and the understatement of royalties by the hotel managers.

Conducted a review on behalf of a Victorian Government agency in relation to an IT outage incident and provided our report of findings to the relevant minister.

Engaged on behalf of an insurer to respond to the opposing side's Independent Expert's report quantifying the loss and damage allegedly suffered by a hospitality business following an interruption to the business caused by building works.

Engaged by a law firm to critique an expert report which quantified the loss of profit allegedly suffered in relation to a breach of contract. The plaintiff was an agent that had been engaged by the defendent, a major telecommunications company, to promote the sale of certain services until the contract was terminated.

Quantified the losses incurred by a winery pursuant to the tainting of several vintages by a third party service provider.

Engaged to quantify a significant contractual claim for a subcontractor on a large construction project.  We worked closely alongside the client and its legal advisors to identify and review applicable costs, appropriate methodologies and supporting documentation to quantify the claim submitted to arbitration.

Analysed product pricing records on behalf of a global energy and natural resources business following claims of anti-competitive pricing behaviour by the competition regulator.  The work comprised the using ACL data mining software to identify pricing behaviour patterns and overlay of this information with timings of meetings and telephone conversations between alleged relevant parties.

Assisted a listed entity responding to an investigation by a corporate regulator in relation to a potential breach of continuous disclosure obligations.  We worked with our client to identify, extract and then analyse the information held within the complex group.

Provided an Expert Determination for two of Australia’s largest energy companies following the merger of their businesses and the demerger of their energy assets.  The dispute related to infrastructure assets and the accounting treatment adopted for certain types of unbilled revenue in the completion accounts.

Engaged as an independent expert to provide an opinion as to the sustainable level of earnings of an Australian hotel business following its acquisition by an overseas business.  The matters in dispute concerned the accounting treatment and valuation of certain liabilities, the accuracy of the completion accounts and the estimated earn-out payments.

Engaged as Independent Expert by a global freight and logistics business in an International Arbitration dispute with the vendor of a group of Asian and North American-based sea and air freight businesses.  The matter included quantifying alleged breaches of warranty claims involving a material adverse change in financial performance post-acquisition, the accounting for recovery of pre-acquisition debtors and the preparation of group completion accounts.

Reviewed the report of a forensic expert in relation to a potential insolvent trading claim following the collapse of the environmental solutions business.  We provided guidance as to the preferred approach to determine the solvency or insolvency of the company and prepared a critique of the expert's report.

Assisted an international law firm in a claim of professional negligence against its client relating to a US$2.2 billion Collateralised Debt Obligation (CDO).  The work included the development of a financial model reflecting the operation of the CDO under different legal interpretations.

Instructed as Independent Expert to assess the fair market value of a large energy infrastructure business following its disposal to an investment fund.  The transacted price of the business at the disposal date was disputed by a number of former shareholders.

Prepared an Independent Expert report discussing the valuation of licences and patents related to the invention of a component of motor vehicle engines.