Forensic accountants: Following the money trail

Companies once thought to be blue-chip stalwarts of the American economy continue to fail. Before the latest scandal surrounding WorldCom’s woes, bankruptcy filings at cable firm Adelphia and telecom upstart Global Crossing and the implosion of energy trader Enron shook the confidence of a stock market already reeling from terrorist attacks on Sept. 11.

What caused the failure of these behemoths is still largely unknown. One group of highly specialized investigators, forensic accountants, are almost certainly looking into what happened at these companies. Sifting through records and reports to piece together what brought about their demise.

According to the American Institute…