The Role of Judicial Expertise in Conducting Forensic Investigations

Financial crimes are becoming increasingly complex and disguised as legitimate activities. In such conditions, forensic plays a key role in uncovering violations — a combination of expertise, analysis, and investigation that helps establish the truth and provide a evidential basis in court.

The Essence of Forensics

Forensics is an interdisciplinary field that combines methods of accounting, auditing, economic analysis, law, and criminology. Its goal is not only to identify signs of financial violations, but also to properly document these facts for further use in court.

Unlike auditing, which confirms the accuracy of financial reporting, forensics focuses on identifying possible abuses and detailed examination of circumstances. It is not just document verification, but a full-fledged investigation with a focus on establishing facts of fraud.

In Ukrainian legislation, forensics is closely related to judicial-economic expertise, regulated by the Law “On Judicial Expertise,” the Criminal Procedure Code, and other acts. However, lawyers do not always fully utilize this protective tool in complex financial cases.

Types of Expertise

In Ukrainian financial investigation practice, four main types of judicial expertise are applied. Their list and general requirements are defined by the Instruction on the Appointment and Conduct of Judicial Expertise, approved by the Ministry of Justice order dated 08.10.1998 No. 53/5.

1. Forensic Accounting Expertise. Most demanded in cases related to economic crimes. It aims to investigate accounting documents and reports to identify violations in accounting, financial data distortions, and fictitious transactions. The forensic accountant analyzes primary documentation, accounting records, financial statements, evaluates the accuracy of reflecting business operations, and the correspondence of accounting data to the actual state of affairs. There have been cases where forensic accounting expertise has helped uncover complex embezzlement schemes through fictitious transactions. Importantly, such expertise is appointed in accordance with Article 242 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and a lawyer has the right to initiate its appointment.
2. Financial-Economic Expertise. It focuses on the financial-economic activities of the entity and its economic results. Experts study financial flows, analyze the economic feasibility of operations, evaluate the efficiency of resource utilization, identify discrepancies between actual activity results and reporting data. The ability to conduct tax investigations within this expertise is particularly valuable. Financial-economic expertise may include research on tax accounting and reporting, determining the amount of damage caused to the state by tax evasion.
3. Computer-Technical Expertise. In the era of digitalization, a significant amount of financial information exists solely in electronic form. Therefore, this expertise is becoming increasingly demanded. It allows for extracting, recovering, and analyzing electronic data, including deleted or modified files, transaction histories, electronic correspondence, and other digital traces of unlawful actions.
4. Handwriting and Techno-Criminalistic Document Expertise. Despite the transition to electronic document circulation, many financial transactions are still documented on paper media. Therefore, handwriting expertise often becomes crucial for establishing the authenticity of signatures on documents, while techno-criminalistic expertise is used to detect forgery, alterations, page replacements, and other document manipulations.

Investigation Methodology

Forensic investigations are carried out according to a clear step-by-step methodology, which includes the following stages:

1. Planning and Task Setting. At this stage, the goal, subject, objects of investigation, information sources, and the composition of the expert team are determined. An important condition is correctly formulated questions to the expert, ensuring the relevance and completeness of the investigation. In criminal proceedings, expertise is appointed in accordance with Articles 242–245 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and in civil cases — according to Articles 102–113 of the Civil Procedure Code. Lawyers should actively use the right to ask questions to the expert, submit additional materials for examination, and request the appointment of repeated or additional expertise.
2. Data and Evidence Collection. This stage includes identifying, obtaining, and properly documenting all relevant materials. Special attention should be paid to compliance with procedural requirements when collecting digital and documentary evidence — to ensure their admissibility in court. The procedures are determined by the Criminal Procedure Code, Civil Procedure Code, Economic Procedure Code, and the Law “On Judicial Expertise.” Care should be taken in preparing lawyer requests and other procedural documents when collecting evidence.
3. Analysis and Investigation. Depending on the nature of the case, different methods are applied:
   • Document Analysis — evaluation of the content and details of documents, identification of inconsistencies and connections between them;
   • Financial Analysis — examination of reporting, financial indicators, and their dynamics in accordance with national accounting standards;
   • Transaction Analysis — tracking the movement of funds, assets, and material values;
   • Data Analysis — processing electronic media, data recovery, metadata examination;
   • Interviews — gathering information from individuals who possess important information for the investigation (in criminal proceedings — questioning witnesses).

4. Conclusion Formulation and Report Preparation. The results of the expert investigation are documented in the form of a conclusion containing a description of the actions taken and answers to the questions posed. According to Article 101 of the Criminal Procedure Code, such a document has procedural significance and can be used as evidence. Lawyers have the right to familiarize themselves with the conclusions, ask clarifying questions in court, and challenge dubious results.

Usage Conditions

The results of forensic investigations in Ukraine can be used for various legal purposes.

In criminal proceedings — as evidence in investigating economic crimes according to Article 84 of the Criminal Procedure Code. In civil and commercial proceedings — to substantiate claims for damages under Articles 76-80 of the Civil Procedure Code and Articles 73-77 of the Economic Procedure Code. In corporate investigations — for making management decisions, identifying dishonest employees. In bankruptcy procedures — to identify illegal asset withdrawals, challenge questionable debtor transactions.

However, for the results to be evidentially valid, the following conditions must be met:

1. Competence of experts and their independence. This should be confirmed by the presence of appropriate qualifications of experts in accordance with the Law “On Judicial Expertise.”
2. Adherence to the investigation methodology and procedural norms in accordance with the Instruction on the Appointment and Conduct of Judicial Expertise.
3. Documentation of all investigation stages.
4. Ensuring the admissibility and relevance of evidence in accordance with the procedural legislation of Ukraine.

Development Trends

Forensics in Ukraine is dynamically evolving under the influence of technological changes, international cooperation, and regulatory updates. Among the key trends, the following are relevant:

1. Digitalization of Processes. The development of big data analysis technologies, artificial intelligence, and machine learning opens up new opportunities for automated anomaly detection, suspicious transactions, and atypical financial schemes. Digital tools are increasingly used in financial statement and document analysis.
2. Advancement of Digital Forensics Methods. The increase in cybercrime necessitates the development of methods for extracting and analyzing digital evidence, including data from blockchain networks, cryptocurrencies, cloud storage. This area is regulated, among others, by the Law “On the Basic Principles of Cybersecurity in Ukraine.”
3. International Cooperation. Financial violations often have a transnational nature, requiring cooperation with experts and law enforcement agencies from other countries. Ukraine participates in joint initiatives with the EU, Interpol, Europol, and FATF, as well as develops the practice of sharing expertise at the level of expert institutions.
4. Improvement of the Regulatory Framework in the Field of Judicial Expertise and Anti-Money Laundering, aimed at enhancing the quality of expert research. Among the relevant changes are the updating of the Law “On Judicial Expertise” and strengthening control over financial transactions in accordance with international standards.
5. Enhancing the Role of Private Expert Institutions. Private expert structures are increasingly involved in conducting judicial expertise, especially in complex financial cases. The legislation recognizes their right to conduct expertise on par with state institutions, expanding access to specialized knowledge in the judicial process.

Conclusions

Judicial expertise is an important procedural institution of Ukrainian law that allows for the involvement of specialized knowledge to obtain objective and well-founded conclusions. In financial investigations, its role is particularly noticeable: expertise helps uncover abuses, confirm or refute facts, and build an evidential basis for judicial review.

Effective utilization of forensic potential requires close cooperation between lawyers, experts, investigators, and the court. Both adherence to procedural norms and the correct formulation of tasks, analysis of obtained results, and the ability to assess them in the context of the case play an important role.

Forensics in Ukraine is developing in line with global trends — digitalization, automation of big data analysis, international information exchange. At the same time, Ukrainian practice has its peculiarities, determined by national legislation and institutional capacity. Further development of this field requires improving the legal framework, enhancing experts’ qualifications, and actively educating lawyers.

Rational and professional use of forensics is an essential condition for improving the quality of financial investigations, ensuring economic security of the state, and strengthening the rule of law in the economic sphere.

The material was published in the publication “Legal Practice”.

13.09.2025