Beware the scammers are attempting to gain access to your trust accounts.  Recently, an attorney who received an email advising that a Swedish company needed the assistance of an attorney to complete a business transaction contacted Sage Investigations LLC. The...

An attorney should always issue a Kovel Letter to a forensic accountant after being hired by a client to represent them in a civil or criminal tax matter. What is a Kovel letter?  It is a letter based on a landmark federal case, United States v. Kovel, 296 F.2d 918...

The definition of Hard Money Lending is fairly simple: a Hard Money Loan is a loan of "last resort" or a short-term “bridge loan.” Bridge Loans are loans of short-term duration that are typically a temporary solution to longer term financing from more customary or...

What is due diligence?  (1) The care that a reasonable person exercises to avoid harm to their person, finances or that of another person. [1] (2) The process of obtaining and evaluating details about the subject, entity, or investment opportunity before making a...

This article continues the series on PPP loans but relates to the forgiveness of the SBA PPP Loan.  Starting in October 2020, a recipient of a PPP Loan has ten months to report to its lender the disposition of the loan proceeds. The reporting can be done on Form 3508,...

In April 2009, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a notice to investors entitled, Broken Promises: Promissory Note Fraud (U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission 2009).The notice defines a promissory note as a form of debt—similar to a loan or an IOU—that...

In Austin, TX, an individual convicted of conspiracy recently had his conviction overturned by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.  During oral arguments for the appeal, the Austin American–Statesman newspaper stated, “The federal judges weighing his...

When reviewing transactions in an accounting system it is important to pay particular attention to journal entries. Journal entries are used to adjust accounting records for activities that are not cash in nature. When dealing with an accrual accounting system,...

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) initially authorized up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees during the COVID-19 crisis. All loan terms were established to be the same for everyone. The loan amounts will be forgiven as...

As a way to stay on top of company expenses, my credit card company recently recommended I provide my employees with their own business credit card. If you’re in business for yourself, this has probably happened to you. The benefits outlined in their sales brochure...