Association of Certified Fraud Examiners LONG ISLAND CHAPTER NEWSLETTER
Vol. 3, Issue 3	August, 2001
Board of Directors: David E. Zeldin, M.P.S., CFE, CFC, CSC, DABFE, FACFE President Det. Lt. Peter M. Calabrese, CFE Vice President, Investigations Gregory J. Naclerio, Esq., JD, CFE Vice President, Membership Robert L. Goldfarb, CFE, CPA, DABFE, DABFA Vice President, Educational Programs Donna N. Karp, CFE Corresponding Secretary Camilia ElDidi Recording Secretary Margaret C. McArdle, CFE, CPA Treasurer Stephen E. Cleary, CFE Sergeant-at-Arms Barry L. Pulchin, CPA, CFE, CVA, DABFA Member At-Large Dennis Langel, CFE Member At-Large Stephen A. Linker, CPA, DABFA Member-At-Large Joan S. Wellstead, CFE Member At-Large Gregory L. Somma, CFC Member At-Large Director of Administration Committee Chairpersons: (Alphabetically) *Board Member’s Committee Assignments Not Listed Steven R. Levine, CFE Chairperson, Public Relations Committee Vice-Chairperson, Meetings & Seminar Committee Jane R. Buck, Esq., JD, CFE Chairperson, Newsletter Committee Det. James Byrne, CFE Vice-Chairperson, Investigations Committee Stephen J. Mannhaupt, CPA Vice-Chairperson, Finance & Audit Committee John F. Matula, CFE Chairperson, Ethics Committee Chairperson, Nominating Committee Susan Nash, CFC Chairperson, Internet Committee Newsletter Editor: Jane R. Buck, Esq., JD, CFE Editorial Staff: Donna N. Karp, CFE Camilia ElDidi Chapter Office: 87 Bethpage Road Hicksville, NY 11801 Telephone: (516) 931-0010 Fax: (516) 931-0008 E-mail: info@licfe.org Internet: www.licfe.org	PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE: DAVID E. ZELDIN, M.P.S.,CFE, CFC, CSC, DABFE, FACFE The next meeting of the LICFE will be at 6:00PM, on Wednesday, September 12^th, at the Westbury Manor. It is our pleasure to welcome as a co-host of this meeting the members of The Society of Professional Investigators (http://www.spionline.org). This TWO CPE CREDIT meeting will feature as Guest Speaker, Handwriting Expert Ruth Brayer. Ms. Brayer is the President of Brayer Handwriting International, and a much sought-after speaker and expert witness. Brayer is the author of "Detecting Forgery in Fraud Investigations: The Insider's Guide". She serves on the Board of Editorial and National Advisors for Inside Fraud Bulletin, an international security publication. Ruth Brayer is the former Vice President of the National Bureau of Document Examiners of NY, past President of the National Speakers Association, Metro NY chapter, and a member of National Association of Document Examiners and the American Society for Industrial Security. By popular demand, the "Case of the Month" will be presented by Barry L. Pulchin. When I asked our own radio personality, "Bearman" for the title of his presentation, he told me it will be a surprise. So, I guess we will have to wait and see! The Seminar Committee has been working for more than six months, together with our educational partners in the Nassau/Suffolk Chapter of the National Conference of CPA Practitioners, to plan a great FULL DAY, 8 CPE CREDIT Seminar. The Seminar will be held on Thursday, November 15^th, at The Westbury Manor. If any Chapter Member would like to volunteer to either be a guest speaker, or present a Case of the Month, please call the Chapter Office, or send an e-mail to info@licfe.org. As a reminder, Chapter meetings, as well as dues can be easily charged by calling the Chapter Office. Dues can also be charged on our Secure Server at www.licfe.org, with a click on Membership Application. Finally, the Advertisement section of the LICFE Web Site is still open. Anyone wishing to place a banner ad on the site, with a direct company link, can do so by sending the HTML Code for the banner to me at dez@zeldin.org. As an added Membership Benefit, there will be NO CHARGE for Chapter Members and Associates, through the end of this year. I hope everyone has had a safe and enjoyable summer. On a personal note, I would like to thank all of the Chapter Members who called, visited and sent warm wishes, while I spent the past ten weeks recovering from a broken leg. As you may have guessed, I broke it on Memorial Day, falling off my Waverunner. Very truly yours, David E. Zeldin David E. Zeldin, CFE

FRAUD IN THE NEWS

NY State Makes Regulatory History

by Manny Topol, August 13, 2001

THE STATE'S TOP COURT officials have made sure that lawyers don't forget their oath and responsibilities as lawyers in their partnerships and business ties with nonlawyers.

New York became the first state in the nation a few weeks ago to issue rules regulating multidisciplinary practices. The new rules, established by the states' Appellate Divisions, become effective Nov. 1, and allow for limited, strictly regulated business affiliations - and fee splitting - between lawyers and nonlawyers, such as accountants, engineers, financial planners, consultants and any other nonlawyer who provides professional services.

The possibility of lawyers teaming up with nonlawyers has sparked bitter debates in recent years in the higher echelons of the legal profession. The arguments center on the decades-old ethics rules governing lawyers.

Some say multidisciplinary practices would offer clients one-stop shopping, while other legal experts strongly believe such arrangements would compromise the integrity of the legal profession.

In 1999, a special panel of the American Bar Association recommended that lawyers and nonlawyers be allowed to share fees and profits. The chairman of that panel, Sherwin P. Simmons, said, "These changes would allow clients more options to where they obtain legal services and lawyers more choices in how they serve clients."

The then-president of the New York Bar Association, Thomas Rice of Brooklyn, said the potential for conflicts of interest in multiprofessional arrangements was too great and could lead to violation of the attorney-client confidentiality privilege.

Such one-stop shopping is legal in many areas in Europe, including Britain and France. Several states, including Utah, Colorado and Arizona, are considering some form of the practice, as is the District of Columbia.

Trends in the accounting industry have been moving toward arrangements with lawyers. The debate within the profession was sparked by the attempted affiliations of some law firms with major accounting firms, and when the Big Five accounting firms moved beyond strictly accounting work and into such areas as litigation consulting, estate planning and mergers and acquisitions.

Recognizing that multidisciplinary practice may be here to stay, New York State court officials want to make sure lawyers remember they are lawyers first, before businessmen and businesswomen.

The new rules keep the core values of the legal profession, which include confidentiality and independence of professional judgment.

The rules prohibit nonlawyers from directing or regulating the professional judgment of lawyers in the rendering of legal services.

"[Multidisciplinary practice] is a fact of life in many jurisdictions around the country," said Jonathan Lippman, New York State administrative judge. "It's basically going on unregulated now. We're the first state to do something about it.

"What we're concerned about are the core values that we in the legal profession are concerned about. It's the lawyers' obligation to exercise independent judgment that avoids conflict of interest, and keep secrets that the clients tell us. Other professions don't have that strict regulation or obligation."

Copyright © 2001, Newsday, Inc.

UPCOMING EVENTS

JOINT LICFE--SPI MEETING WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 12^TH

DETECTING FORGERY IN FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS: THE INSIDER’S GUIDE

With Special Guest Speaker Ruth Brayer, President,

Brayer Handwriting International

FULL DAY SEMINAR THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15^TH

CO-SPONSORED BY LICFE & NCCPAP

MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW!

CHECK FOR DETAILS -- COMING SOON ON OUR WEBSITE

www.licfe.org

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Long Island Chapter Urgent – Dated Information

Association of Certified Fraud Examiners

87 Bethpage Road

Hicksville, NY 11801

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED