AICPA力推法务会计（双语）

　　The American Institute of CPAs is encouraging more CPA firms and college professors to teach forensic accountants the skills they need to ferret out financial chicanery.

　　The institute has published a report， “Characteristics and Skills of the Forensic Accountant，” analyzing the results of a survey of attorneys， forensic CPAs and academics. The AICPA sought their views on the qualities they believed were essential in a forensic accountant. The report notes that in the wake of the economic crisis， forensic accounting has grown as a discipline for CPAs. The institute estimates that 20，000 to 30，000 CPAs now provide forensic accounting services.

　　“The CPA is the ideal professional to conduct forensic accounting，” said AICPA chairman Robert Harris， who holds the institute‘s Certified in Financial Forensics specialty credential. “The CPA profession’s essential values include integrity and objectivity， which are critical for forensic accounting.”

　　All three groups surveyed overwhelmingly cited analytical ability as the most essential characteristic of a forensic accountant： 78 percent of attorneys， 86 percent of CPAs and 90 percent of academics.

　　There were differences， however， in how the three segments ranked core skills. Attorneys believed oral communications to be the most important skill， reflecting the need to express an opinion effectively in a court of law. CPAs， on the other hand， identified critical and strategic thinking as most important， with written and oral communications as second and third， respectively. Academics agreed with the CPAs that critical and strategic thinking was the prime skill， but rated auditing skills and investigative ability as second and third.

　　Forensic accounting encompasses collecting， analyzing and evaluating evidence， and then interpreting and communicating the findings in court， boardroom or other legal and administrative venue. Attorneys tend to be the primary clients of forensic accountants.

　　The AICPA is seeking to draw younger people into the field， as well. As a result， one key objective of the report is to guide academics on what a forensic accounting curriculum needs to encompass.

　　“Students see opportunities in forensic accounting， so we‘re developing a program for the forensic accountant of the future，” said Michael Ueltzen， a forensic CPA who chairs the AICPA Certified in Financial Forensics Committee. “About 50 colleges offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in forensic accounting or a certification in the discipline. That’s five times what the number was only five years ago.”

　　美国注册会计师协会（AICPA）鼓励更多的会计师事务所和大学教授将查处财务舞弊所需的各项技能传授给法务财会人员。

　　AICPA在一份题为《法务财会人员的特征和技能》的报告中（详情请访问），对在律师、法务注册会计师以及专家学者中开展的一项调研成果进行了分析。AICPA就法务财会人员必须具备的品质向上述三个群体的人士征求了意见。该报告表明，金融危机爆发之后，对注册会计师而言，法务会计已经成长为一门新兴的学科。据AICPA估计，目前共有2至3万名注册会计师对外提供法务会计服务。

　　本身就持有AICPA颁发的“注册金融法务资格”（Certified in Financial Forensics）认证证书的该协会主席Robert Harris表示：“注册会计师是实施法务会计的理想人选。注会行业基本的职业价值观包括诚信和客观，这也正是法务会计的基石。”

　　在接受调查的律师、注册会计师以及专家学者中，分别有高达78％、86％以及90％的受访者认为，分析能力是法务财会人员至应体现的特征。

　　然而，在核心技能的排序上，三个受访群体却有不同的见解。受访的律师认为，由于在庭审时需要切实有效地表明观点，所以，言语沟通是至为重要的技能。另一方面，注册会计师则认为批判与战略性思维是第一位的，书面交流和言语沟通分列第二、三位。专家学者认同注册会计师的看法，也将批判与战略性思维视为首要技能，但是位列第二、三位的是审计技能和调查能力。

　　法务会计涵盖证据的收集、分析以及评估，并向法庭、董事会或其他法律以及管理机构解释和沟通调查结果。律师往往是法务会计师的主要客户。

　　目前，AICPA正试图吸引青年才俊入行，因此，撰写上述调研报告的一个重要目的在于引导大专院校对法务会计所需的课程进行设置。

　　Michael Ueltzen是AICPA注册金融法务委员会的主席，同时也是一名法务注册会计师，他说：“莘莘学子看到了法务会计所提供的良机，所以我们正在为未来的法务会计制订发展计划。现在，约有50所大学可授予法务会计学士、硕士学位或是课程证书，这一数字已是5年前同类学校数量的5倍。”