Anecdote of the Week

CAIN & ABEL

What most of us in the forensic accounting field will tell you is that a business breakup among family – a shareholder’s suit let’s say between brothers – can make a bitter divorce battle over a business seem like a discussion at a knitting circle. In dealing with a shareholder suit among two brothers who owned a supply business, our client bitterly complained that his brother was a thief (the words he used were somewhat more colorful), and was stealing from the business. Figuring that in-your-face candor was the best route to take, we suggested to our client that his brother was doing nothing different than he was – they were both stealing from the business, they were both stealing from each other. As only a guiltless thief can say with a straight face, our client responded “Yes, that’s true, but he’s stealing more than I am.” These two brothers, who by the way were no youngsters – they were both in their 70s – were so angry with each other, and so irrational, that during the litigation, when their mother died, they couldn’t agree on anything having to do with the funeral or the mourning period