Litigation & Disputes Services

Our multi-disciplinary teams deliver insights, value and efficiency through every stage of litigation or dispute resolution, providing complex damages calculations, business valuations and forensic technology services, among other services. 

We provide knowledge, experience and insights regarding the following types of disputes: 

• Breach of contract and lost profits
• Torts
• Shareholder and partner disputes
• Securities litigation
• Insurance litigation
• Bankruptcy litigation
• International arbitration
• Employment disputes
• Intellectual property disputes
• Antitrust
• Financial reporting dispute consulting

Post-Acquisition Dispute Consulting
We advise buyers and sellers and also serve as neutral arbitrators in post-acquisition disputes. We help clients understand and resolve the numerous accounting and contractual issues they may face in post-closing purchase price adjustment disputes.

As seasoned arbitrators, BDO works with buyers and sellers to establish processes for proceedings, analyze submissions, preside over hearings and present reasoned decisions. 

Our extensive experience includes:

• Consistent application of GAAP and/or past accounting policies, practices and procedures
• Contract interpretation issues
• Management estimates and judgments
• Uncollectible accounts receivable
• Excess and obsolete inventory
• Contingent and unrecorded liabilities
• Revenue recognition principles
• Determination of purchase price allocations
• Other complex accounting issues

Representations & Warranties
We work on behalf of our clients to determine whether representations and warranties have, in fact, been breached. Our professionals are well-versed in assessing even the most complex representations and warranties tied to accounting and financial reporting.

We assist with:

• Analyzing supporting documentation
• Preparing claims on behalf of insureds 
• Substantiating claims on behalf of insurers
• Calculating damages
• Testifying in insurance-related matters regarding the quantum of loss

BDO’s dedicated family law professionals work side-by-side with attorneys to assist clients in understanding and resolving a wide range of financial issues that impact the ultimate division of the marital estate. Services include: 

• Tracing and characterization of a variety of assets
• Business valuations
• Forensic accounting   
• Pension valuations
• Reimbursement claims
• Reconstitution claims
• Assisting with discovery
• Assisting at mediation
• Rebutting opposing expert testimony
• Assisting with hearing, deposition, and trial preparation
• Testifying at depositions and trials

BDO works with counsel to evaluate audit and accounting professional liability claims against accounting firms and individuals. With significant experience working with both global and regional accounting firms, we have advised counsel representing clients in high-profile matters involving allegations of audit and accounting improprieties involving hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. Additionally, our professionals have provided testimony before federal and state court, as well as the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”), U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), and other regulatory bodies.
 
Helping our clients defend or settle claims, BDO advises on technical audit and accounting issues in a variety of settings, including litigation, investigations, arbitrations, and regulatory or professional proceedings. We also evaluate damages and determine loss causation. We work with clients to address allegations of:

• Violations of professional standards, including generally accepted auditing standards, PCAOB standards, and SEC rules and regulations
• Failure to detect fraudulent financial reporting or misappropriation of assets
• Lack of independence and other ethics matters 

Our professionals draw on a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, and have held positions with standards-setting bodies and self-regulatory organizations, including the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, PCAOB, and Financial Accounting Standards Board. Our team includes:

• Certified public accountants
• Certified fraud examiners
• Forensic accountants
• Computer forensics specialists
• E-discovery specialists

BDO assists with complex and high-profile securities litigation matters, including class actions, derivative suits, and alleged white collar criminal matters. We possess extensive experience presenting our findings to the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulatory bodies.
 
Our services include:

• Analyzing allegations of fraudulent financial reporting, accounting irregularities and financial statement restatements
• Investigating accounting transactions
• Investigating alleged accounting and financial disclosure irregularities
• Evaluating the effectiveness of internal controls
• Performing forensic accounting analyses
• Developing analyses of potential liability and damages, and assisting in negotiating favorable settlements
• Assisting counsel in drafting court filings and documents
• Leveraging the tools of  our Forensic Technology Services team 
• Understanding local data privacy and security requirements with e-discovery services