Both good and bad reasons why a client can request a verbal report
from the investigator. For example, our manager requests us to give a
verbal report about any project we are working on at different steps
during the project. This is to make sure that we are going in the right
direction or understand what is being asked of us before we invest
too much time in the project. We have a new member of our team
that didn't understand what was being asked of him. When he
reported at the end of the day what he had found, our manager was
able to direct him in a different direction. This may be needed
forensic accounting investigations as the client may need to point out
a direction to focus on (Rosenberg, 2010).
The client may ask for an oral report to ensure that progress is being
made on their project also. This could be a time when a lawyer may be
able to provide directions to look that the investigator had not
thought of as well. While eliminating information from a written
report is never a good idea, there may be analysis that need included
in the report that is not already there (Rosenberg, 2010). If the
forensic accountant is missing a vital piece of information, this may be
found during an oral review of the report.
There is also the chance that the client is concerned with what has
been discovered. In requesting an oral report, they may find that the
forensic accountant is not finding the information that they had
wanted and may end the project. They also may find that the forensic
accountant was able to uncover their fraud and want to prepare for
what may happen.
Rosenberg, J. (July 2010). Written Report? Oral Report? What's an
Investigator To Do? Retrieved
http://judithrosenberg.com/articles/caowi_1_3.html
