1. What is a Certified Forensic Investigator?
   
   
2. What is the Association of Certified Forensic Investigators of Canada (Association) and what does it do?
   
   
3. What is the objective and/or purpose of the Association?
   
   
4. Who are the founders of the Association?
   
   
5. Is there a "Grand Parenting" period for the Certified Forensic Investigator designation?
   
   
6. Is an examination required to receive certification?
   
   
7. What are the dues of individual membership?
   
   
8. What are the benefits of membership?
   
   
9. I currently receive emails and periodic advertising from the ACFI. Am I a member?
   
   
10. Who are the typical members of the Association?
    
    
11. Who are the current Board of Directors of the Association?
    
    
12. How do I become a member?

Certified Forensic Investigators (CFIs) are professional fraud investigators who have by experience, education and examination satisfied the requirements of the Association of Certified Forensic Investigators of Canada (ACFI) and have been admitted as regular members of the Association.

CFI members come from a wide variety of public and private sectors and, while some may own and operate their own businesses providing services to the public, others may be employed by organizations.

The services provided by a CFI relate to the prevention, detection and investigation of fraud. This may involve, but not be limited to, providing a thorough and complete investigation to sustain or refute allegations of impropriety and subsequently providing testimony related. Another service provided might be the audit of business systems to determine the adequacy of controls to detect, prevent and investigate fraud.

CFIs may also provide fraud related training to educational facilities, government and businesses.

The Association is a Canadian non-profit accrediting organization responsible for administering the Certified Forensic Investigators’ programme in Canada.

The Association of Certified Forensic Investigators of Canada (ACFI) also provides services such as seminars, conferences, specialized training, networking, periodic newsletters, as well as a web site with a members only section which includes a fraud investigators "Treasure Chest" to assist both regular and associate members with their investigative tasks.

The purpose of the Association is to promote the Certified Forensic Investigator (CFI) designation in Canada amongst its members and to the public as a symbol of the highest standard of excellence in its field for the benefit of the public at large and in service to its members.

The ACFI also promotes and fosters a national forum and governing body for the affiliation of professionals who offer to the public, governments and employers, their expertise in the area of fraud prevention, detection and investigation, as well as liaison with other non-profit associations for the purpose of promulgating fraud awareness

In essence the Association provides a meeting place where CFI practitioners, who are engaged in law enforcement, forensic & investigative accounting, law, auditing and other related fields, can meet with each other as well as others to discuss fraud related issues.

Peter Alexander
With over 25 years’ experience in the internal audit environment, Peter was the Manager of Audit for the Management Board Secretariat. He has investigated numerous alleged frauds and has conducted fraud-related seminars. Peter sat on the advisory board of Seneca College, helped develop their Forensic Accounting Post Diploma Program, and taught Fraud Investigative Techniques for several years.

Stuart Douglas
Stu is the National Partner of Deloitte & Touche, responsible for the Canadian firm’s and Toronto Office’s Litigation Support Practice. He was the Inaugural Chair of the CICA’s Investigative and Forensic Accounting Special Interest Group.

Ken Froese
Ken is a Director of LECG, an expert services company, practising in their Toronto office in Investigative and Forensic Accounting services. He has been involved with numerous fraud related cases, has provided expert testimony in both criminal and civil courts and has been a noted speaker for professional and commercial entities.

Glen Harloff
Currently Managing Director of Kroll’s Caribbean office, Glen has extensive experience in the prevention, detection and investigation of fraud, including insolvency/bankruptcy, secret commissions/kickbacks, procurement fraud and other schemes. He has traced assets for numerous clients throughout North America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. Prior to joining Kroll, he held senior positions at LECG and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He also served for more than 20 years with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, including nine years as a senior investigator in the commercial crimes investigation unit.

Donald Holmes
With over 25 years' experience he was credited with being one of the grandfathers of what has now become a world wide institutional phrase and discipline known as "forensic and investigative accounting". He was a well-known lecturer to various organizations including law firms, professional associations, corporate groups and government agencies. Cited as being an inspirational guiding light to the profession, Don passed away on March 21, 2002.

Alan M. Langley
Alan has performed audits and investigations in Canada, the United States and England and has held, over 25 years, numerous positions within the audit environment, including director. Since 1987 he has been providing fraud-related services to both the private and public sectors and has lectured to accounting bodies, government, educational facilities and businesses on fraud-related issues.

Nina V. Watson (Treasurer)
Nina has performed forensic and investigative engagements into alleged contractor, programme and procurement fraud, as well as employee impropriety. She has also lectured at Seneca College, as well as the Institute of Internal Auditors (Toronto Chapter) on fraud-related subjects.

The Board of Directors has implemented a grand parenting period to provide senior professionals, possessing experience with fraud issues, the opportunity to apply for membership and subsequent certification once they have successfully completed the written abridged examination.

An abridged examination, designed to be written within one hour, is currently required to be successfully completed by all candidates for the CFI designation.

The challenge examination has been designed to test a candidate’s knowledge in the areas of business, finance, civil and criminal law as well as ethics.

The challenge examination has been designed by the law firm of Blaney McMurtry, the accounting firms of Deloitte and Touche, Ernst and Young, Grant Thornton, PricewaterhouseCoopers and several members of the ACFI Board of Directors with a view to testing a candidate's knowledge in the areas of business, finance, civil and criminal law as well as ethics.

UPDATE: To aid candidates in studying for this exam, the ACFI Fraud Manual is provided to all regular members as a benefit of membership. Associate members may purchase the CD for $295 + GST. For non-member pricing and special discounts, please see the Fraud Manual information.

What are the dues of individual membership?

• Dues are payable in Canadian funds.
• Dues are billed yearly on the anniversary date of membership.
• Dues and application fees are subject to change at any time by the Board of Directors of the ACFI.
• Annual dues for associate members are currently $100 + GST
• Annual dues for regular members are currently $245 + GST
• There is an application fee for regular members of $200 + GST

Both associate and regular members receive:

• Membership in a Canadian non-profit accrediting organization
• Discounts on all Association events as well as books and manuals published by the Association
• Access to members only web site, which includes the ACFI "Treasure Chest"
• Periodic training opportunities
• Networking opportunities with others in the field of fraud prevention, detection and investigation.
• Regular members receive a free copy of the current ACFI Fraud Manual upon payment of their membership fees.

The ACFI sends email notices and advertising brochures to a wide audience of both members and non-members. If you have not applied for membership and subsequently received an acknowledgement, together with your member's password, then you are not a member and therefore not able to fully access our website or receive discounts on ACFI events.

To remedy this, please obtain an application form via our web site.

• Internal and external auditors
• Current and former law enforcement officers
• Solicitors and Barristers
• Forensic and Investigative Accountants
• Public Accountants
• Private Investigators and Regulators
• Loss Prevention and Security Professionals

President & Treasurer

Nina Watson, CA.IFA, CFI
Nina V. Watson & Associates, Toronto, Ontario

Nina has performed forensic and investigative engagements into alleged contractor, programme and procurement fraud, as well as employee impropriety. She has also lectured at Seneca College, as well as the Institute of Internal Auditors (Toronto Chapter) on fraud-related subjects.

Vice President

Peter Alexander, CGA, CFI
Peter Alexander & Associates, Gormley, Ontario

Peter has over 25 years’ experience in the internal audit environment. The President of Alexander & Associates Inc., Peter was formerly the Manager of Audit for the Management Board Secretariat. He has investigated numerous alleged frauds and has conducted fraud-related seminars. In addition, Peter sat on the advisory board of Seneca College, helped develop their Forensic Accounting Post Diploma Program and taught Fraud Investigative Techniques for several years.

Secretary

N. Patrick McParland, CMA, CFI
Grant Thornton, LLP, Vancouver, British Columbia

Pat McParland is a principal in the Vancouver office of Grant Thornton LLP. Since 1988 he has participated in numerous fraud prevention, detection and investigation assignments, as well as other commercial litigation matters. He has consulted with clients to assess their internal controls and their compliance regimes relative to various statutory requirements. Pat has provided expert witness testimony in both civil and criminal proceedings in Alberta and British Columbia. He has provided assistance to clients, particularly financial institutions, on international assignments in the USA, Mexico, Europe, China and South America.

Directors at Large:

Wayne Cooke, CFI
WorkSafe BC, Vancouver, BC

Wayne is Manager of Special Investigations & Strategic Fraud Prevention for WorkSafe BC. A retired member of the RCMP, Wayne has 25 years of experience investigating major commercial crimes relating to financial institution frauds, secret commissions, legal community fraud, proceeds of crime & money laundering, multi-jurisdictional and international investigations, travel industry fraud, insurance fraud, medical profession fraud, Federal & Provincial Minister indiscretions and fraud and Asian Organized Crime and internal investigations. Wayne also lectures at the Vancouver Community College.

Morgen Cookson, CAMS, CFI
MCAP Service Corporation, Toronto, Ontario

Morgen is currently a mortgage fraud investigator with MCAP Service Corporation. He graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in psychology, is an accredited mortgage professional, a certified anti-money laundering specialist and certified forensic investigator. With MCAP for ten years, he has spent the past five years investigating mortgage fraud cases across Canada.

Jerry Gaertner, CA-CISA/IT, CFI
Soberman LLP, Toronto, Ontario

Jerry is Director of Technology Assurance Services at Soberman LLP. With over 25 years experience in the field, Jerry has conducted engagements ranging from systems audits to security reviews, computer fraud investigations to penetration studies, digital forensics to advising Boards of Directors on technology strategy. Jerry has testified in court on dozens of occasions. Jerry is also a trustee in bankruptcy, in which capacity he conducts statutorily-mandated investigations into the disappearance of assets and bankruptcy fraud.

Charlotte Hoggard, CGA, CFI
T. Charlotte Hoggard Inc., Victoria, BC

Charlotte is a partner with the accounting firm, Cameron Hoggard Izard Snell in Victora BC. She has a diverse background in Taxation and Investigations in both public practice and with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), including being one of the original authors and trainers of the CRA internal Underground Economy Audit course.

Larry Levasseur, CFI
Winnipeg Police Service, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Larry Levasseur is a twenty-year veteran of the Winnipeg Police Service where he has spent most of his career within the Service’s Criminal Investigation Bureau. Larry currently holds the rank of Sergeant and is in charge of the Commercial Crime Unit. He has attained the designations of Certified Forensic Investigator and Certified Protection Professional. In 2002 Larry was awarded the Excellence in Law Enforcement Award by the Attorney General of Manitoba and in 2007 received the Canadian Banks’ Law Enforcement Award from the Canadian Bankers’ Association.

Sheree Mann, CA, CFI
LECG Canada, Toronto, Ontario

Sheree is a Director with LECG's Canadian investigative and forensic accounting services practice. She has over 15 years of exclusive experience in relation to investigation, forensic accounting and quantifying economic losses. Her practice has consisted of criminal and civil fraud and financial investigation matters, including a secondment with the Ontario Provincial Police. Her experience in loss quantification includes engagements related to breach of contract, expropriation, personal injury and labour-related matters.

Neil Papineau, CGA, CFI
Papineau Consulting Inc, Ottawa, Ontario

Neil is a forensic accountant and investigator specializing in wrongdoing, fraud and corruption in government operations. Has over 30 years forensic audit experience in civil and criminal matters with extensive court experience. He has developed several auditing and investigations manuals and has trained many auditors in Canada and internationally. After a career with the Office of the Auditor General of Canada in the Forensic Audit Section and with Revenue Canada in the Special Investigations Section, Neil went into private practice with his firm Papineau Consulting Inc.




Past President

Ken Froese, CA.IFA, CFI
LECG Canada, Toronto, Ontario

Ken is a Director of LECG, an expert services company, practising in their Toronto office in Investigative and Forensic Accounting services. He has been involved with numerous fraud related cases, has provided expert testimony in both criminal and civil courts and has been a noted speaker for professional and commercial entities.




Executive Director

Alan Langley, CFI
Association of Certified Forensic Investigators, Toronto, Ontario

Alan has performed audits and investigations in Canada, the United States and England and over many years has held numerous positions within the audit environment, including director. Since 1987 he has been providing fraud-related services to both the private and public sectors and has lectured to accounting bodies, government, educational facilities and businesses on fraud-related issues.

How do I become a member?

Simply obtain the application form from our web site and follow the instructions. If you have any questions regarding membership please call our office at (416) 226-3018 or our toll free number of (877) 552-5585. Please note that our toll free number only works in Canada.

Note: Candidates for certification are granted points based upon a combination of education and work experience in one, or more, of the qualifying groups.

With reference to experience, the qualifying groups are: fraud auditing, forensic & investigative accounting, fraud investigations, commercial crime/law enforcement and other. Please note that qualifying fraud-related experience must be Canadian.

Other normally relates to items such as those within the purview of a lawyer, the defending or prosecuting of fraud actions.

Under the points system, each candidate must have at least 60 points to apply, of which currently at least 15 of their points must be in the experience category, with only 5 points being granted for each qualifying year of related work experience. For the purposes of clarity, 1,000 work-related or billable hours are classified as one year.

The section related to Education "C" is relatively straight forward. However, candidates should note that points are awarded for certificates which have been earned over a period of time and through an examination process. The maximum points allowed for the certification section is 10.