Chicago (Jan. 10, 2003) -- Accounting firm Thomas Havey has instituted new internal procedures in response to the accounting scandal at its Washington office.
The Chicago-based firm, ranked 34th on Accounting Today's Top 100 Firms list, has replaced the senior management team in place at the time of the scandal and instituted checks and balances recommended by former U.S. Secretary of Labor Ray Marshall, whom it retained to review its operations.
The moves are in reaction to a scandal involving two former Havey partners and the International Association of Iron Workers, a client of the Washington office. In separate plea bargains in U.S. District Court last summer, Francis J. Massey pled guilty to assisting fund officers in falsifying reports from 1992 to 1999 "to hide in excess of $1.5 million in personal dining, drinking, and entertainment expenses," and Alfred S. Garappolo pled guilty to "knowingly and willfully concealing and failing to disclose" information regarding the embezzlement of $33,000 from the fund, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
The firm issued a formal statement decrying the former partners' actions as running "completely counter to the values and code of conduct that have made Thomas Havey a trusted and respected accounting firm." Separately, a spokesman confirmed that firm partners are discussing a possible firm-wide reorganization.
--John M. Covaleski
