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Lesley, Thomas, Schwarz & Postma, Inc. is engaged by attorneys or by litigating parties to provide accounting investigation, written reports and expert testimony in court on financial and accounting topics. Most cases are either (1) marital dissolution cases, (2) cases alleging that business profits were lost because of a specific event, or (3) contractual disputes involving accounting or financial records and issues.
Marital dissolution cases usually center around our valuation of a family-owned business; determining the total financial income from the business that will benefit the party retaining the business; and advising on the income tax effects of various marital settlement alternatives.
Lost profits cases involve accounting investigation to determine the actual amount of lost profits and our opinion as to the causes of any such losses. The proper application of generally accepted accounting principles in measuring profits or losses is a frequent issue.
Contractual disputes require us to conduct an accounting investigation and form an opinion as to how much is due by one party or another. We utilize our expertise in complex accounting and/or income tax areas to try to resolve the cases. Examples of contractual disputes include: partnership agreements, sales contracts, insurance contracts, and construction contracts.
Regardless of the issue, our mission is to provide a very thorough analysis of all aspects of the case, to maintain a fair and objective point of view, and to present complex issues in a way that can be clearly understood by a judge, jury, and the disputing parties. Frequently, our services lead to a settlement of all or most of the financial and accounting issues.
We have provided expert testimony in courts and arbitrations in Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles and San Diego counties.
One of the reasons we believe our firm is held in high regard by the Courts and by attorneys is because we are a full-service firm that also provides litigation support services, whereas many other CPAs providing litigation support do not have the broad base of accounting and income tax experience that our firm does.
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