• The trustee of a superannuation fund and the owners of a business sued their accountant for loss and damage they claimed they incurred as a result of alleged negligent advice their accountant gave in structuring and financing the fund’s assets

• Ferrier Hodgson assisted the lawyers acting on behalf of the accountant in relation to complex superannuation, taxation and damage considerations. This involved the following:
• Identified whether or not the advice the accountant gave was negligent
• Identified documents the plaintiffs should have discovered in the proceeding
• Quantified the loss and damage the plaintiffs’ incurred assuming the accountant was negligent
• Critiqued the loss and damage calculated by another forensic accountant that the plaintiffs had engaged

• The issues identified by Ferrier Hodgson assisted the lawyers’ understanding of the alleged negligence issues and the quantum of any loss and damage
• Ferrier Hodgson also identified a number of errors in the report prepared by the forensic accountant engaged by the plaintiffs, which grossly overstated the loss and damage claimed
• This helped reduce the plaintiffs’ expectations as to the damages they might be awarded and greatly assisted in a settlement between the parties

Greg Meredith & Colin Gill, Melbourne