Articles

Fraud claims against insurers wrongly dismissed

Plaintiffs who purchased cash-value life insurance policies for their employees and deducted those contributions on income taxes that were later disallowed were wrongly denied their day in court against the insurers.

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Ernst & Young faulted for relying on Madoff’s word, audits

Ernst & Young LLP erred by taking Bernie Madoff at his word when it signed off on audits of a fund that helped feed the biggest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history. The firm then stumbled by trusting the con man’s now-disgraced ex- accountant, a jury in the first trial of its kind was told.

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Anderson estate attorney’s alleged thefts may top $500,000

Sarah Wilding wanted her church in Anderson to receive the bulk of her estate when she died in April 2012. The church is still waiting, and so are other beneficiaries who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars to a lawyer accused of plundering their estates.

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(IL illustration/Brad Turner)

Trust and the troubled child

Estate planning attorneys occasionally draw the strong-willed client who wants to leave money to an heir – but only if the kid sobers up, quits getting in trouble with the law, gets a job, stops living beyond his means, or changes behavior in some other way.

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Ernst & Young confronts Madoff’s specter in trial over audits

Ernst & Young LLP took Bernie Madoff at his word when it signed off on audits of a fund that helped feed the biggest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history. The firm must now defend that decision at the first trial of an auditor over losses tied to Madoff, who’s serving a 150- year prison term for stealing billions of dollars from thousands of investors.

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Kissel: Keeping the business in the family

Passing the family business to the next generation is likely to be one of the biggest projects of the owner’s lifetime. Family business succession is the process of transitioning the governance and ownership of a closely held business to the next generation.

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Ex-prosecutor helps Ball State avert future fraud

A former federal prosecutor and a CPA firm are evaluating Ball State University's internal financial controls and investment portfolio as they create a plan to prevent a repeat of two investment scams that cost the university more than $13 million.

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Thomas: When drafting a will, be as specific as possible

To ensure that your client’s property will go to the beneficiaries of his or her choosing, as opposed to the beneficiaries that the state chooses, it is imperative that the last will and testament be very specific and provide for as many contingencies as possible.

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