Collection Of Forensic Accounting Evidences

Forensic accounting is an professional authentication activity by accounting knowledges. Compared with that of other activities of forensic science, the evidences of forensic accounting are special in collecting methods and material forms, which gives rise to the diversity of authentication services and the broad prospects and also the chaos in theory, legislation and practice.Firstly, there is no unified theory of forensic accounting. The scholars in China fail to reach a consensus due to being affected by various theories, whose understandings of the connotation and denotation of the concepts are different, thus they use different definitions in deduction. Additionally, the scholars disagree with each other in the definition of forensic accounting evidence, which makes it difficult to define the collectors. Secondly, there is no legal criterion of collecting procedure. The laws concerning the evidence collection are mainly applicable to the litigation evidence, which are not always applicable to the forensic accounting evidences, for the relationship between the two notions is complicated. Thirdly, there is no standard in practice. Evidence collectors in practice pursue the judicial efficiency under the imperfect rules, leading to non-standard collecting procedures. Therefore, in order to unify the theories and create regulations, a complete theory is necessary.The paper clarifies the connotation and denotation of the forensic accounting evidence by using qualitative analysis, analyzes collecting purposes and methods under various situations, clarifies the different rights and tasks in different activities, and then deduces the competent collectors. In addition, the paper researches on different theories including monism and dualism, analyzes the deficiency of the theories and the problems need to be solved. The paper chooses the theories suitable for China, considers the reality of evidence collection in criminal and civil action, analyzes the validity of collection in various situations, thus constructs an universal conclusion of forensic accounting evidence to regulate the collection.The paper clarifies the concepts with respect to forensic accounting, expounds the specificity of forensic accounting, explains the relationship between forensic accounting evidence and litigation evidence, therefore constructs a solid theoretical presupposition. The paper also explains the principle of forensic accounting evidence collection, describes the objects of collection, and the theories required to explain the relationship between subjects and objects. Additionally, the paper analyzes on evidence collection regulations and collectors in criminal and civil action, and illustrates the criterion in concrete situations according to the rules in laws and practice. Finally, the paper puts forward solutions to the specificity of collection by constructing an identification system of forensic accounting evidence, a standard of circumstantial evidence and a criterion of collectors.The conclusion is that the problems of evidence collection are derived from the failure to construct a complete theory of forensic accounting evidence and the failure to recognise the specificity of forensic accounting. Consequently, the paper constructs a complete theory in the first half and proposes corresponding solutions to the specificity of collecting methods, forms and collectors in the end.