Litigation and mediation support
Independent forensic accounting support for lawyers and their clients in commercial, family law and employment disputes, from early case assessment and mediation to expert reports and court. We are forensic accountants working alongside your legal team, not lawyers.
We help legal teams understand the financial issues early, identify the documents that matter, and test whether the numbers support the case before costs escalate.
As an expert, we prepare reports that comply with the relevant expert evidence rules and our paramount duty to the court, and give evidence where required, including in arbitration.
For mediation and settlement negotiations, we prepare clear financial analysis of the issues and settlement scenarios, and can attend to explain the numbers.
We critique reports prepared by other experts, identify the assumptions that drive their conclusions, and help frame questions for joint conferences and cross-examination.
Business and share valuations, quantification of damages, loss of earnings, fund tracing and payroll recalculations, written to be tested.
A clear, independent review of the opposing report, its method and its assumptions, so you know where it is vulnerable.
Jointly appointed single expert, party expert, or behind-the-scenes adviser to the legal team, where permitted.
Lost profits, business interruption and loss of earnings, calculated on the basis instructed.
Transactions analysed to frame targeted disclosure requests and subpoenas, and to find what's missing.
Settlement analysis for mediation, joint expert conferences, concurrent evidence, court appearances and arbitration hearings.
We give independent opinions within our expertise. We do not provide legal advice or act as an advocate.
Principal
Principal, Maxwind
Erin is the principal of Maxwind Analytics. Her background combines corporate finance, building and running businesses, and specialist valuation and forensic work.
Maxwind Analytics has advised Melbourne businesses and their advisers since 2020.
About ErinMost engagements are offered with a clear scope and a fixed fee for each stage of the litigation timetable, agreed with the instructing lawyer before work starts.
No, you can engage a forensic accountant directly. But if there is a legal dispute, or one is likely, bring your lawyer in early. Your lawyer frames the legal questions, we answer the financial ones, and the two need to line up.
Read the full answerHourly rates for forensic accountants in Australia are commonly around $300 to $600, depending on experience and complexity. The hourly rate tells you little on its own. The total depends on the question, the volume of records and the type of report, which is why a clear scope and fixed fee is the better guide.
Read the full answerNo. Price reflects a firm's overheads and brand as much as the quality of the work. A good forensic accountant asks the right question, tests the evidence, and explains conclusions that survive cross-examination. Those things don't come with a premium price tag.
Read the full answerA single expert is jointly appointed by both parties to give one independent opinion on the value of a business interest. Both sides provide instructions and information, and the expert's duty is to the court rather than to either party. It often reduces cost and the conflict that comes with competing valuations.
Read the full answerStart with complete bank statements for every account the money may have passed through, for the whole period in question. Add loan, property and share transaction documents, and the general ledger where one exists. Missing statements are the most common reason a trace stops.
Read the full answerYes, where appropriate. A consulting expert helps the legal team understand the financial issues and test the other side's evidence without giving evidence.
Usually, yes. Tell us the hearing or response date at the first call so we can confirm availability.
Yes. We prepare financial analysis of the issues and settlement options before mediation and can attend to explain the figures. Legal advice and negotiation stay with your lawyer.
Family law property settlements, shareholder and partnership disputes, commercial damages claims, fraud and misappropriation, and wage underpayment disputes.
A short conversation is usually enough to tell whether we can help and what the work would involve.
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