Go ahead, say it: Forensic accounting is sexy. At least, that's how those in the field describe this fast-growing niche that incorporates investigation and auditing expertise to provide analysis in a judicial setting. "I see more general service firms saying on their Web sites, 'We do forensic accounting,'" said Howard Silverstone, CPA, FCA, CFE and co-founder of Forensic Resolutions Inc., based in Haddonfield, N.J. "Part of it I think it's because it's sexy, and part of it is because they realize there's a legitimate market for it and people really understand it enough now that they are going to be looking for people like us."

Debbie Cutler, CPA, CFE and a partner at New York-based consultancy Kramer, Love & Cutler LLP, said that interest in the forensic field has grown through a combination of the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation and because more companies are looking to tighten up their internal controls. Forensic accounting, she said, also has become more well known and, yes, "sexy," because of prime-time television programs such as CSI.

"You used to go to a party and somebody asked you what you did and you said you were an accountant and they said, 'Have a nice night,'" Cutler recalled. "The reality was, we were known as the 'green eyeshades.' I would say the public understands what a forensic accountant does more than what an accountant does. It's branched out, unfortunately, because of cases like Enron and WorldCom where people have lost their own personal money."

A BOOMING BUSINESS

It's because of this growing attention that some forensic accountants say that newcomers to the accounting industry have found this niche appealing.

In fact, about 78 percent of those in Accounting Today's 2007 Top 100 Firms roster reported an increase in forensics services.

"I talk to a lot of the recruits coming through, and forensic accounting is definitely a hot topic coming out of college," said Matt Wester, a partner for litigation, valuation and bankruptcy consulting services at Hein & Associates, a Denver-based CPA and business advisory firm. "If there's one benefit to Enron and WorldCom and a lot of these high-profile frauds, it's that a lot of today's accounting students were learning about that stuff in the class and now they want to come out and work in the field."

Stefano Vranca, CPA and director of litigation support and forensic services at Los Angeles-based Stonefield Josephson, said that he would increase the staff in his department by 25 percent this year, and double it by the end of the next year to keep up with the flood of work. "We have everybody swamped," Vranca said, adding that the specialty brings in approximately 10 percent of the firm's revenue. "It's a growing niche and there's a need for experts and expert testifiers. We're even turning work down lately that we can't take."

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