財報不實之實證研究─論鑑識會計在財經犯罪案件之訴訟支援

Abstract

白領犯罪近年來深受學界與實務界之重視，舉凡財報不實、內線交易、市場詐欺等議題一再於法庭中出現。白領犯罪行為之發生主要出自於行為人違背其所受到之信任，雖然白領犯罪不會對被害人產生身體上的傷害，然其卻可能帶來巨大的經濟損失，造成投資人和債權人對市場之不信任，進而影響整體社會運作以及經濟發展。 其中，財報不實之案件在白領犯罪研究中，亦屬重要之議題。公開發行公司在其業務運作上需要資金不斷之挹注，而其募集資金之來源主要來自於投資人之投資及債權人之借貸，然此二種人平時並無法介入公司的日常營運活動，因此其多半僅能仰賴公司所發布之財務報告來了解公司的財務資訊，以進行投資與否之判斷與決策。因此，財務報告之真實性對於資本市場之重要性不言可喻。 本文擬就白領犯罪中之「財務資訊不實」進行實證研究，探討財報不實議題於實務上之概況，包含有罪比例、行為動機、行為態樣與行為發現途徑等。另就「舞弊」之議題作探討，藉由美國舞弊稽核師協會每二年定期所做之國家報告，可對全球舞弊現況為進一步之認識，並針對相關議題，如舞弊之發生、職場舞弊發現途徑及吹哨者揭發等為研究。 此外，鑑識會計為我國新興發展之議題，其正處於萌芽與成長之階段。財經案件偵審過程中，常涉及專業之財經與會審知識，法律人不見得對此皆十分精通，因此有引入專業財會人員協助之需求。鑑識會計主要分為「調查性會計」與「訴訟支援」二類，本文對此二領域皆會加以介紹，惟會將重點置於「訴訟支援」，以往先進亦有對此議題為研究者，本文擬立於前人之肩上，進一步以質性訪談之方法進行研究，訪談實務與學界之法律與會計專業人士，以了解其對財報不實案件之偵審、鑑識會計議題及制度建立之看法，並試圖對相關制度設計提出建議。

White collar crime, such as financial statement fraud, insider trading and market fraud, appears in the court frequently and therefore it is an important issue in today’s society. White collar crime occurs when the offenders breach the trust that has been bestowed to them. Although white collar crime does not cause physical harm to the victims, it may cause a tremendous financial loss and the victims may lose their trust of the market. Thus, white collar crime has a serious impact on the society and its economic growth. Among different types of white collar crime, financial statement fraud is a topic that is highly talked about. Public companies need plenty of funds to maintain their business, and these funds were made available from the investments of shareholders and creditors. Since these shareholders and creditors cannot usually get insights on a company’s daily operations, they can only depend on the financial reports that are released by their invested companies to understand a company’s financial outlook. Therefore, the factualness of these financial statements is, without a doubt, very important to the capital market. This thesis investigates financial statement fraud by studying the percentage of conviction, the perpetrator's motive, the behavioral techniques and the ways that the fraud was discovered. Furthermore, this thesis discusses the concept of fraud. By reviewing the “Report to the Nation” which was conducted by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, we can better understand global fraud. In addition, this thesis will examine fraud occurrence, ways to disclose workplace fraud and whistleblower protection. Moreover, forensic accounting is a hotly debated issue in Taiwan today. In financial case investigation and trial processing, the process usually depends on professional finance, accounting and auditing knowledge. Forensic accounting is divided into “Fraud Investigation” and “Litigation Support”. This thesis focuses on “Litigation Support” by conducting interviews with the professionals in the field of forensic accounting. The interviewees include judge, prosecutor, lawyer, accountant, Taiwan’s forensic accounting committee and accounting professor. By gathering different viewpoints, this thesis hopes to contribute to the development of forensic accounting in Taiwan.