Forensic Accounting Investigation

Lawsuit Situation:

An automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM), the Defendant was accused of stealing new electronic shock absorber technology that a former supplier, the Plaintiff, claimed to have developed. Originally, the Plaintiff was awarded a large contract to provide those shock absorbers for a number of high-end vehicle models. When the OEM cancelled the contract, and the Plaintiff pursued a lawsuit to sue claiming theft.

Forensic Accounting Investigation Process:

With the Plaintiff claiming the loss of all computer records from a wide-scale system crash, our forensic accounting and computer forensic experts recreated seven years of time records by hand for the engineering division. Our litigation support advisors then extracted two sets of backup time records from the “crashed” computer system. Ultimately the results of the analysis revealed that, in many cases, there were three sets of time records for the same individuals, for the same weeks.

These records were presented in the Court during the lawsuit on three simultaneous video screens, providing convincing evidence that the Plaintiff had in fact billed the same hours for certain employees to numerous clients and should be awarded nothing.

Resolution:

The OEM was awarded not only a Summary Disposition after seven years of legal battle, but also $4 million in sanctions. The Plaintiff filed for bankruptcy, and the Court appointed Doeren Mayhew’s forensic accountants to assist the receiver. Ultimately the OEM recovered the $4 million in sanctions it was awarded from the lawsuit.

For more information about how Doeren Mayhew can help you in your case’s time of need, contact our litigation support specialists.