On Judicial Accounting

Judicial accounting is a new accounting field developed in the judicial practice in western countries in twentieth Century and 80s with the complicating business environment.

It is mainly through accounting analysis of specific economic cases (such as economic disputes, economic errors and economic crimes, etc.) and the measurement of economic losses. It provides an important basis for the judiciary's final ruling on economic cases and proves a special accounting for the facts of economic cases.

In 90s, China began to study and explore judicial accounting preliminarily. At present, a complete scientific theoretical system has not yet been formed.

Therefore, strengthening the study of judicial accounting will help to communicate the relationship between the accounting field and the law, and will help improve the legal system construction of China's socialist market economy.

This article makes a preliminary discussion on several basic problems such as the meaning, object, function, principle and method of judicial accounting.

With the development of market economy and the deepening of reform and opening up, the economic subject tends to diversify.

The economic links among various economic entities, such as social organizations, economic organizations and economic individuals, are becoming more frequent and close, resulting in economic frictions, economic disputes and economic crimes.

The emergence of these economic cases, if not effectively resolved, will seriously affect the normal operation of the socialist market economic order.

In judicial practice, because lawyers, judges and litigants lack corresponding accounting expertise, it is difficult to conduct financial investigation and scientific loss of economic losses. In the absence of strong financial evidence, it is difficult for the court to make an objective and impartial decision.

In order to safeguard the dignity of law and the legitimate rights and interests of litigants, it is necessary for judicial officers who know both legal knowledge and familiar accounting knowledge to provide strong financial evidence for the final ruling of economic cases.

Under such circumstances, judicial accounting arises at the historic moment.

Therefore, we can say that the formation of judicial accounting is to meet the needs of the development of socialist market economy and the practice of economic and judicial practice.

The basic theoretical issues about the meaning and characteristics of judicial accounting are still not systematically studied.

The author believes that judicial accounting refers to the requirement of judicial accounting personnel appointed by judicial organs or litigants. In the process of handling economic cases, we should use professional techniques and methods to conduct accounting analysis of capital movements in economic cases, and obtain accounting evidence from accounting information related to economic cases, so as to prove the facts of economic cases, and provide an important financial evidence for judicial organs to deal with economic cases fairly.

Judicial accounting is different from the general enterprise's financial accounting.

First, judicial accounting is a litigation activity, not financial accounting is a management activity of an enterprise.

Judicial accounting can only be used correctly by judicial departments in accordance with legal procedures, and its behavior runs through all aspects of the entire economic case. Its ultimate task is to provide accounting evidence and objective measurement of economic losses for the litigation process.

Secondly, judicial accounting is only applicable to economic cases, but not in the litigation process of all cases.

Economic cases are special economic activities. They are economic matters that the judiciary is trying or handling to cause abnormal movement of funds, such as economic disputes, economic errors and economic crimes.

Only when the funds involved in the economic cases happen abnormal changes, can judicial accounting play its due role.

Third, the purpose of judicial accounting is to collect accounting evidence from relevant accounting information by analyzing the movement of funds in economic cases, so as to prove the truth of economic cases.

At the same time, it also shoulders the important task of objective measurement of economic losses, so as to provide scientific basis for judicial organs to recover losses and solve economic disputes.

Fourthly, the objects of judicial accounting are judicial organs and litigants.

Under the condition of market economy, legal action will become an effective means for every economic subject to protect their own rights and interests.

Only when the judicial organ assigns and the litigants request, can judicial accountants perform their functions, thus completing the task of judicial accounting and achieving the purpose of judicial accounting.

Two, about the object of judicial accounting, studying the object of judicial accounting will help us better carry out the work of judicial accounting and give full play to the role of judicial accounting.

The object of judicial accounting is the accounting information and other information that reflects the movement of case funds related to economic cases in judicial work, including accounting vouchers, accounting books and financial reports and other related information, such as records of relevant assets and materials, economic contracts or agreements, business correspondence and judicial accounting personnel, etc.

The emergence of every kind of economic case is due to abnormal changes in capital activities in economic activities, and the change of funds in these cases must be reflected in the corresponding accounting information. Therefore, through the investigation and analysis of these accounting data and other related information, we can provide systematic, objective and detailed accounting evidence for measuring the economic losses caused by economic negligence, economic disputes and economic crimes, and use the specialized methods of accounting to comprehensively identify and judge the financial facts of economic cases, so that the court's decisions are more objective and fair, and the legitimate rights and interests of litigants can be effectively protected.

In judicial practice, the relationship between economic cases and accounting information is mainly manifested in the following aspects: firstly, accounting analysis of accounting information related to economic cases, scientific inference of the law of movement of case funds, collection of useful accounting evidence, so as to identify whether economic cases occur, whether criminal acts are committed by suspects and the time, place, means and methods of criminal acts.

Second, we use accounting methods to measure objectively the economic losses, creditor's rights and debts caused by economic cases.

Third, using accounting, auditing and legal knowledge, the collected accounting information is examined and examined, and judicial accounting reports are issued to provide strong litigation evidence for exposing economic crimes and clarifying the facts of cases.

Three, about the function of judicial accounting. The function of judicial accounting is the function and function of judicial accounting.

With the establishment and improvement of China's socialist market economic system and the strengthening of economic justice, judicial accounting is playing an increasingly important role in combating economic crimes, maintaining social economic order and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of litigants.

Specifically, judicial accounting has the following functions: 1., reflecting the law of movement of case funds, analyzing accounting information, and providing accounting evidence for handling economic cases.

A large number of judicial practice has proved that any economic case is related to the financial management confusion, the financial system is not strict and the management system is not perfect.

Whether it is corruption, misappropriation of public funds, bribery, or tax evasion, smuggling and other economic crimes, it will leave more or less traces in the accounting information.

It is the main duty of forensic accounting to use accounting expertise and methods to check relevant accounting information, find out the source and whereabouts of funds, track suspicious suspects, remove suspects, distinguish right from wrong, and provide effective and powerful accounting evidence for the final ruling of economic cases.

The economic losses caused by the 2. objective econometric cases, the scientific measurement of the claims, debts and personal assets in economic disputes, provide litigation support for litigants, protect the legitimate rights and interests of the litigants, and make the innocent person free from penal punishment and maintain the fairness of the law. This is another important duty of the judicial accounting.

3., to combat and prevent economic crimes, to maintain social and economic order, and to ensure the smooth progress of national economic construction.

With the deepening of reform and opening up, some lawless elements have tried every possible means to drill loopholes in the system and law, wantonly carrying out economic crimes, which has brought huge economic losses to the state, collectives and enterprises, and seriously hindered the smooth development of China's market economy construction.

Judicial accounting, using the expertise of accounting and judicature, finds, collects, judges, analyzes and collects accounting evidence from accounting materials. It is a major task for the judiciary to severely crack down on economic crimes and to restore economic losses to the state and collectives, and to curb the continuing crimes committed by economic criminals.

Four, about the principles of judicial accounting. Because judicial accounting involves both knowledge of accounting and knowledge of judicial science, we must follow the relevant principles of judicial activities and accounting work when conducting judicial accounting work.

Generally speaking, when obtaining accounting evidence, it should follow the basic principles of jurisprudence. When measuring the economic loss objectively, we should follow the general principles of accounting.

In addition, I believe that when judicial accounting personnel provide services for judicial organs and litigants, they should also follow the following principles: 1. principles of legality.

This means that when handling economic cases, judicial accountants should independently exercise their own functions and powers according to the assignment of the judicial organs, without any other organs, groups or individuals.

The composition, contents, procedures and means of judicial accounting are all in accordance with the law, so as to make accounting evidence more authentic and reliable.

2. principles of objectivity.

It is emphasized that in the process of providing accounting evidence for judicial organs in handling economic cases, judicial accounting should follow the normal movement rules of funds in economic matters when accounting methods are used to analyze accounting information, so that judicial accounting reports and conclusions can confirm the truth of economic activities and become reliable evidence for solving economic cases.

3. principles of justice.

In exercising their functions and powers and checking and collecting accounting information in cases, judicial accountants should act in an impartial and responsible manner. They should not be able to report personal interests or engage in personal irregularities. They should be impartial and unbiased, so that the procedures, methods and objectives of judicial accounting should be fair and reasonable.

4. key principles.

Before the investigation and collection of accounting information related to economic cases, judicial accountants should first understand the basic situation of the case, analyze the basic law of the movement of criminal cases, roughly determine the means of committing criminal suspects, so as to further grasp the key points of judicial accounting examination, achieve targeted and improve efficiency.

At the same time, judicial accounting should focus on the specific difficult problems that need to be solved, and can not go beyond its scope to check other financial problems that are not related to the case.

5. principles of professionalism.

In order to make forensic accounting personnel more scientific and persuasive, it is necessary for judicial accountants to master certain professional knowledge such as accounting, auditing, taxation, and law, and apply these knowledge to solve specific problems in judicial practice.

On the other hand, the professional principle also emphasizes the judicial accounting reports issued by judicial accountants after analyzing, judging and arranging accounting data. It is a scientific conclusion from the accounting point of view, which is an effective basis for judicial organs or litigants to initiate proceedings. It does not determine the application of law.

Five, about judicial accounting methods, in fact, judicial accounting was initially part of the audit, so it has many ways to learn from the audit method.

In particular, when auditing the accounting data, many methods in the audit can be adopted.

This article only discusses several common methods in forensic accounting.

1. inspection method.

It refers to the judicial accounting personnel in the economic justice, the audited units of the accounting information for examination and inspection.

It includes examining the authenticity, completeness, correctness and legality of accounting vouchers; examining the relationship between general ledger and subsidiary ledger, general ledger and journal, accounting card, accounting statement and accounting ledger in accounting books; and recalculating the relevant data in accounting statements, so as to find out whether their contents are consistent and whether they are calculated correctly.

In the process of examination and inspection, abnormal data and handwriting should be noticed, and special attention should be paid to it. It can be reviewed repeatedly until the truth is found.

2. correlation check method.

It means that in the process of collecting accounting evidence, judicial accounting should not only examine the accounting information of the audited entity, but also check the accounting data of other units related to the units being audited, so as to confirm the original appearance of the economic cases from different sides, so as to make the accounting evidence more convincing and scientific.

3. talk about inquiry.

In order to get the economic cases out of the picture, a forum should be held on the basis of clues provided by the masses to investigate and inquire about the parties concerned and the responsible persons, or to ask the informants individually, especially for the contradictions within the unit and the opinions of the masses.