Companies face enormous challenges and risks, including potential public scrutiny, reputational damage, litigation costs and damages arising from securities litigation. Litigation may also extend to the company’s boards of directors and officers who may face shareholder class action and/or derivative litigation. If the litigation focuses on alleged accounting fraud, company auditors may also be named in filings. Frequently, companies may be forced to defend securities class action litigation in parallel to ongoing regulator enforcement actions, often multi-jurisdictional. It is essential, therefore, to have the appropriate legal, data governance and, where applicable, forensic accounting experts to guide the Company and its officers through such complex issues.
FRA’s broad range of experts include former regulators at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and Serious Fraud Office (SFO); auditors at national offices of public accounting firms; ex-investment bankers familiar with complex investment products and damage calculations; and Big 4 partners experienced in litigation consulting. Our team of experts works seamlessly to help clients mitigate risks associated with complex securities class action and derivative lawsuits, regulatory investigations, and claims of auditor malpractice. We support organizations and their legal counsel at all points of the litigation lifecycle, including discovery, pre-case assessment, data analytics and analysis, litigation consulting including an assessment of compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS), damages calculations and serving as expert witnesses.