The Court System
Courts that handle cases that involve the US Constitution, cases involving disputes over several states, etc.
What are Federal Courts?
1. Investigation and pleadings
2. Discovery
3. Motion practice and negotiation
4. Trial and appeal
What are the four basic stages of civil cases?
What are the amendments that protections in criminal case primarily arise from?
What are the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments?
A person whose opinion, by virtue of education, training, certification, skills, or experience, is accepted by the judge as an expert in a court case or tribunal.
What is an expert witness?
Courts that typically try cases on misdemeanors and preliminaries for felony and civil cases that are below a certain dollar amount.
What are lower-level trial courts?
Explains the alleged violation of the law and the monetary expenses or damages sought in the case.
What is initial pleading (or complaint)?
Determines whether "probable cause" exists to charge the defendant with a crime.
What is a preliminary hearing?
Process in which experts are qualified by the judge to render an expert opinion.
What is voir dire?
An insurance contract that guarantees payment to an employer looking for protection in the event of unforeseen financial loss through the dishonest actions of an employee.
What is fidelity bonding?
A means of securing documents in the other party's possession that are relevant to the case. (Ex. bank statements, property records, stock certificates, accounting records, contracts)
What are production requests?
What rights are protected under the Sixth Amendment?
What are:
Recieve a speedy and public trial,
Be heard by an impartial jury,
Have a trial held in the state and district that the crime was committed,
Be informed of the accusation,
Confront witnesses,
Compel witnesses to attend trial, and
Be represented by legal counsel
What are the general standards that an auditor must meet?
What is:
The auditor must have adequate technical training and proficiency to perform the audit.
The auditor must maintain independence in mental attitude in all matters relating to the audit.
The auditor must exercise due professional care in the performance of the audit and the preparation of the report.
What are the 5 types of courts under the 12 Circuits of the U.S. Court of Appeals?
What are the U.S. Administrative Agency, U.S District Courts, U.S. Tax Courts, U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, and U.S. Magistrates?
A series of written questions that specifically identify information needed from the opposing party.
What is an interrogatory?
What are the three ways to arrest a suspect for a crime?
What are:
1. Arrest without a warrant by a private citizen or police officer who observes a crime being commited.
2. Arrest after a warrant has been issues (obtaining a warrant requires a preliminary showing of probable cause).
3. Arrest after an indictment by the grand jury.
The auditor must obtain a sufficient understanding of the entity and its environment, including its internal control, to assess the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and to design the nature, timing, and extent of further audit procedures.
What is the second standard of field work for auditors?
What are:
1. Name Schedule Fidelity Bond: the company designates a set amount of coverage for a list of employees that it provides to the insurance company
2. Blanket Position Bond: the employer specifies coverage for a position rather than the individual
3. Primary Commercial Blanket Bond: this coverage covers each employee but treats the employees as one unit
What do the attorneys for both sides decide when they meet with the judge before a trial?
What is:
Certain ground rules for litigation,
What documents will be admitted, and
How long the trial will last
The criminal litigation process:
What is:
1. Filing criminal charges
2. Arresting and charging the defendant
3. Preliminary hearings
4. Arraignment
5. Discovery
6. Pretrial motions
7. Trial and Appeal
What are the standards of reporting for auditors?
What are:
The auditor must state in the auditor’s report whether the financial statements are presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
The auditor must identify in the auditor’s report those circumstances in which such principles have not been consistently observed in the current period in relation to the preceding period.
When the auditor determines that informative disclosures are not reasonably adequate, the auditor must so state in the auditor’s report.
In the auditor’s report the auditor must either express an opinion regarding the financial statements taken as a whole or state that an opinion cannot be expressed