Accounting for change - Portland Business Journal:

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Demand from business clients is up for litigation andforensixc accounting, accountants in the Portland area say. Valuation work linked to merger s and acquisitionshas fallen. And tighter credit has increased the need for even small privatde businesses to compile financial statements that meet the strict standardes of theirlarger peers. has seen an increas in lawsuits by shareholderss against individualsand corporations, whicg has heightened demand for forensic accounting and frauxd analysis, said William Holmes, managing partner. The Portlansd firm consulted on behalf of investorsa in the case against Oregon venture capitalistCraig Berkman.
Juror s penalized him $28 million last year, after concludinfg that Berkman had misused funds and lied aboutfhis investments. Similar litigation continuesa to occupythe firm, Holmes though he declined to specify open cases. Geffejn Mesher & Co. has experienced an increase in demandr forsome services, and decreases elsewhere. The Portlanrd firm has historically offered valuation work centered arouned merger andacquisition activity, said Mike Rompa, managinvg shareholder. But mergers and acquisitions havedried up, cuttin into demand for those services. forensic accounting work is up. “During tougnh economic times, fraudulent activity does Rompa said.
Business clients are increasingly callinf on Geffen Mesher to review theitr internal controls and identify possiblefraudulent activity. Geffeb Mesher is also preparin g more complex financial reports for smal andprivate businesses. Banks have growj more cautious about making and increasingly require businesses to submit financialp statements that adhere tothe U.S. Generally Acceptef Accounting Principles, Rompa said.
This has created work for accountintg firms that specialize in smalp andprivate businesses, which historically have not had to use accounting principles developed for larger, public “The more prolific the accountinfg standards are, the more difficult the smaller businesd finds it to comply with those Rompa said. “The cost of compliance has Those stricter standards are the result of increasedf scrutinyon banks, which has createf work for accounting firm of Portland.
The firm counts a numbed of banks amongits clients, said partner Mark As bad loans take a toll on bank balance sheets, statd and federal regulators have required many banks to conduct thorough reviews of their loans, generating work for the accountants. Demand across business client s is up for strategic planning Business clients face slimprofiy margins, or even losses, and are calling on accountantss to identify strategic moves, Symonds said. “Nobody knows how long this recessiobn is goingto last, but we can help clients identifyt changes they may need to make to businesss practices.” Holmes and Co. has likewis e seen an uptick in this kind ofconsulting work.
The firm has adopted a policy of open investing in communications technology to make employees accessible aroundthe clock. “Clients have a lot of anxietgy abouttheir future, their families, their bankiny relationships,” Holmes said. “Wer don’t want to creatd more anxiety by notbeing