Forensic Accounting Services
Expert forensic accounting insight from Jack Ross Chartered Accountants
Jack Ross Chartered Accountants provides a full range of forensic accounting services for solicitors, barristers and their clients. Every service is delivered to the standard required for contested proceedings: independent analysis, transparent methodology, and reports that comply with CPR Part 35 or FPR Part 25.
Whether you need a Single Joint Expert for a financial remedy case, a party-appointed expert in a commercial dispute, or behind-the-scenes advisory support, our team has the qualifications and court experience to deliver. Based at our Manchester office, we serve solicitors across England and Wales, with regular instructions from London and courts throughout the North West and Midlands. We attend courts regularly in Liverpool, Leeds, Birmingham and across the Northern and Midlands circuits. Below is an overview of our core service areas.
Expert Witness Services
We provide independent expert witness evidence across family, civil and criminal proceedings. Our reports are CPR Part 35 and FPR Part 25 compliant, and the named expert on every report is the person who conducted the analysis and will attend court. We accept SJE appointments, party-appointed instructions and shadow expert roles. Our court experience includes the Family Division of the High Court, county courts, the Business and Property Courts and tax tribunals.
Business Valuations
Business valuations for legal proceedings require a different approach from commercial valuations. Every assumption will be challenged, and the valuer must defend their methodology under cross-examination. We value businesses using earnings-based, asset-based and market-based methods, selecting the approach that best fits the specific business. We routinely value owner-managed companies, partnerships, professional practices and shareholdings in contested family and commercial proceedings.
Matrimonial Finance
Financial remedy proceedings under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 frequently require forensic accounting input. We assist solicitors with Form E analysis, business valuations for the s.25 asset schedule, income assessments for maintenance calculations, and identification of undisclosed assets. Our work integrates with the Section 25 factors and we coordinate with Pension on Divorce Experts where pension sharing is in issue.
Forensic Investigation
Where there are concerns about fraud, hidden income or asset dissipation, we conduct forensic investigations using bank statement reconstruction, lifestyle analysis, Companies House cross-referencing and net worth calculations. Our findings are presented in a format suitable for court proceedings, whether the investigation supports a financial remedy application, a freezing injunction or a criminal prosecution.
Litigation Support & Personal Injury Claims
Commercial disputes involving financial loss require robust quantification. We provide litigation support for breach of contract claims, loss of profits calculations, wasted expenditure claims and business interruption disputes. Our analysis follows the "but for" test, comparing actual performance against the counterfactual position, and we ensure that mitigation and contributory factors are properly accounted for.
Tax Advisory on Separation
The tax consequences of a proposed settlement can be significant, and a settlement that looks fair on paper may produce an unequal outcome once capital gains tax, stamp duty land tax and income tax are taken into account. We advise on the extended no-gain/no-loss window under TCGA 1992 s.58 (as amended by Finance Act 2023), principal private residence relief, pension sharing tax treatment and the timing of asset transfers to minimise the overall tax cost.
Professional Negligence
We provide quantum evidence in professional negligence claims against accountants, solicitors, financial advisers and surveyors. The measure of loss is the difference between the claimant's actual position and where they would have been had the professional not been negligent. This requires careful counterfactual modelling, and our reports set out the assumptions, methodology and range of loss in a format the court can rely on.
Forensic Insolvency
Insolvency proceedings raise specific forensic questions: wrongful trading, preference payments, transactions at an undervalue and directors' misfeasance. We work with insolvency practitioners and their solicitors to investigate pre-insolvency transactions, quantify claims against directors and third parties, and provide expert evidence in Insolvency Act 1986 proceedings. See our glossary for definitions of key insolvency terms.
Discuss Your Requirements
If you are not sure which service best fits your case, we are happy to discuss it. Many instructions span more than one area, and a preliminary conversation will help us scope the work properly and provide a realistic fee estimate. Contact Jack Ross or call 0161 832 4451.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. A single forensic accounting instruction can cover business valuations, income analysis, asset tracing and tax advice. This is often more cost-effective than instructing separate experts for each element, and it ensures that the financial analysis is consistent across the case.
Fee structures depend on the type of work. Business valuation reports are typically quoted as a fixed or capped fee. Court attendance and ongoing advisory work are charged at agreed hourly rates. We provide detailed fee estimates before accepting any instruction, and in family proceedings where court approval of expert fees is required, we assist with the application.
Yes. We offer a brief initial consultation to understand the case, assess whether forensic accounting input is needed, and provide a scope of work and fee estimate. This consultation is confidential and without obligation.
Litigation support is advisory work conducted behind the scenes for one party. It is protected by legal professional privilege and is not disclosed to the court or the other side. Expert witness work involves producing an independent report that is disclosed to all parties and may be relied upon in court. The expert's duty is to the court, not the instructing party. We can advise on which type of engagement is appropriate at the outset.