Ego, Emotion, and Excel: Using Forensic Accountants in Mediation

David Golbahar, CPA/CFF, CGMA is a Managing Director at Golbahar Consulting Group, a leading forensic accounting and litigation consulting practice. With nearly two decades of experience in financial forensics, Mr. Golbahar specializes in quantifying economic damages in complex disputes and conducting comprehensive fraud investigations across diverse industries, including entertainment, real estate, technology, and manufacturing. A trusted expert witness who has been retained in over 50 matters and testified more than 20 times at deposition, arbitration, and trial, Mr. Golbahar brings deep expertise in calculating lost profits, business interruption losses, and partnership dispute damages. Mr. Golbahar is a member of the Beverly Hills Bar Association Litigation Section and serves as CalCPA Economic Damages Vice Chair, demonstrating his commitment to advancing the forensic accounting profession while providing expert analysis that attorneys rely on to resolve high-stakes financial disputes.

Michael G. Kaplan has nearly 50 years of experience in the areas of Forensic Accounting, Business Valuation, and Litigation Consulting. Mr. Kaplan is a Forensic Certified Public Accountant who is regularly called upon to testify as a qualified expert witness in federal and state courts. He has participated in approximately 300 trials. Mr. Kaplan has also served as a court appointed expert accounting referee.

Mr. Kaplan has served as a university professor for approximately 24 years (including 18 years at the University of Southern California). He created and taught courses for the National Judicial College, American College of Business Court Judges, National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, and presented sessions for various Bar Associations, various CPA societies, and other professional organizations. His professional affiliations have included local, regional and national CPA/Advisory firms.