Since joining the firm in April 1996, Lorna developed and has managed the in-house forensic accounting department of Jaffe and Clemens; a unique pairing among family law firms in Southern California. She brings twenty-six plus years of forensic accounting experience in family law matters. Licensed as a certified public accountant in California, she holds the AICPA accreditation of Certified in Financial Forensics. Her forensic accounting work includes analysis of marital standard of living, complex tracing, substantiation of misappropriation of funds and hidden assets, tax analyses, analysis and allocation of deferred compensation benefits, and analysis and allocation of income streams from royalties and residuals. Generally, Lorna is available to the lawyers of the firm to help with accounting issues at all levels. Lorna has testified as an expert witness in the family law departments of the Los Angeles Superior Courts and regularly participates in voluntary settlement negotiations.

Lorna has been an active member of the California Society of CPA’s (“CalCPA”) Litigation Section’s Family Law Section since 1996. She has served the section in various capacities over the years. Since 2003, she has served as the section’s secretary. Lorna is a registered volunteer CPA mediator for the Los Angeles Superior Court Alternate Dispute Resolution Program for the Family Law Department.

Born in Hawaii, Lorna attended Santa Monica College and UCLA Extension, and received an Award in Accounting from UCLA Extension in 1990. Passing the CPA exam in the first sitting, Lorna was granted her license to practice as a CPA in the State of California in 1995. As a child of deaf parents, Lorna is proficient in American Sign Language.

 

Associations:

  • Member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and California Society of CPAs

  • Member of the Family Law Section of the CalCPA’s Litigation Section; serving as the bar liaison from 1997 through June 2002, chairperson for the 2002 Family Law Conference; member of the planning committee of the Annual Family Law Conference for the 2001 to 2005 conferences; secretary of the Family Law Section for the 2003 to 2010 term years, and currently serving through the 2012 term.

  • Associate member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners

 

Speaking, teaching and publications:

  • Co-author, “Flowchart to Determine Deductible Support”, prepared by the Family Law Section of the Litigation Section of the CalCPA, March 1999
  • Co-Author, “Innocent Spouse Relief Flowchart”, prepared by the Family Law Section of the Litigation Sections of the CalCPAs, 1999 and updated July 2009

  • Speaker – CalCPA Channel Counties Chapter, September 2002 – marital property and support issues

  • Co-author – “The Tax Traps of Alimony”, The Family Advocate, journal of the ABA Family Law Section. Vol. 25, No. 4, Spring 2003 issue

  • Speaker – The ABA, Family Law Section, winter conference, Seattle, Washington, October 2003, Tracing and Commingling: Marital Stew

  • Speaker – CalCPA Education Foundation, 2005 Family Law Conference, Los Angeles and San Francisco, November 2005, international and US-based asset search investigations

  • Co-Speaker – South Bay Bar Association, brown bag presentation, August 5, 2011, Dueling DissoMasters

Practice Areas:

  • Forensic accounting-family law

  • Certified public accountant, Licensed in California, 1995

  • AICPA’s accreditation of Certified in Financial Forensics, 2008

University:

  • Santa Monica Community College, 1985-1987

  • University of California Los Angeles Extension, Award in Accounting, 1990

Memberships:

  • California Society of CPAs

  • California Society of CPAs Litigation Section, Family Law Section American Institute of CPAs

  • Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, associate member

Professional Organization Activities:

  • Family Law Section of the CalCPA Litigation Section, Bar Liaison, 1997-2002

  • CalCPAs 2002 Family Law Conference, Chair

  • CalCPAs Family Law Conference, Planning Committee Member, 2001-2005

  • Family Law Section of the CalCPAs, Secretary 2003 to present

Speaker:

  • CalCPA Channel Counties Chapter, September 2002 – Marital Property and Support Issues

  • The American Bar Association, Family Law Section, Winter Conference, Seattle, WA, October 2003, Tracing and Co-mingling: Marital Stew

  • CalCPA Education Foundation, 2005 Family Law Conference, Los Angeles and San Francisco, November 2005, International and US-Based Asset Search Investigations

  • South Bay Bar Association, Brown Bag Presentation, August 5, 2011, Dueling DissoMasters, co-speaker

Publications and Articles:

  • Co-author, “Flowchart to Determine Deductible Support,” prepared by the Family Law Section of the Litigation Section of the CalCPA, March 1999

  • Co-Author, “Innocent Spouse Relief Flowchart,” prepared by the Family Law Section of the Litigation Sections of the CalCPAs, 1999 and updated

  • July 2009

  • Co-author, “The Tax Traps of Alimony,” The Family Advocate, journal of the ABA Family Law Section, Vol. 25, No. 4, Spring 2005 issue

Languages:

  • American Sign Language