Establishing yourself formally as an expert will allow you to differentiate yourself in both practice and industry
If during your career you have found yourself dealing with a significant number of specialist engagements, you may have sufficient expertise to act as an expert witness or determiner.
Adding an additional income stream to your business and establishing yourself formally as an expert will allow you to differentiate yourself among accountants, whether you are working in practice or in industry.
As an accredited expert witness, you could be instrumental in facilitating a fair outcome in client disputes in court. As an expert determiner, you could be using the same skills and knowledge to determine dispute outcomes and resolve disputes as an alternative to a court hearing.
Transforming your practice to become a key player in this highly regulated area may not only be lucrative but also rewarding.
As part of a partnership between ACCA and the Academy of Experts, ACCA Technical Advisory has created a suite of guides to introduce members to those new roles.
The role of an expert witness is to give independent, impartial evidence on matters considered by the courts.
As an accountant, you could assist in cases relating to:
Contrary to many other career paths, you can start your expert witness training with a short and inexpensive course provided by the Academy of Experts; ACCA members will be offered discounted course rates.
The two- or three-day courses – which can be undertaken separately or as a series – will cover everything you should know to demonstrate best practice as an expert witness. Expert determiner courses are also available.
This course provides a starting point for a new expert witness, covering
Cost for ACCA members: £495+VAT.
This course is designed to give you the knowledge and experience of being in court – a challenging and confrontational environment.
If you are called to give evidence in the witness box you need to be confident of your courtroom skills. As part of the training, you will experience what it is like to be cross-examined by a practising barrister and learn how to deal with cross-examination.
Cost for ACCA members: £295+VAT.
This course will provide a working knowledge of the structure of the legal system in which you will be working, as well as outlining some of the differences between the basis of law both within the UK and in other jurisdictions.
Procedure rules are the bedrock of expert witness work and compliance is mandatory. The Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) are deceptively simple and can trap those who are inexperienced or untrained.
Cost for ACCA members: £295+VAT
Check available dates and prices.
Please note that the training may be available to you as an ACCA member at discounted prices available to the Academy’s members only. You should contact The Academy of Experts directly to discuss their terms and pricing.