Robert A. Bonavito, CPA, MBA, PFS, CVA, ABV, CFE, CFF, CGMA

EXPERIENCE

Robert A. Bonavito is the managing partner for Robert A. Bonavito, CPA A Professional Corporation. Robert has studied finance and business valuation at Harvard University, along with earning a Bachelors from Montclair State University and his MBA in finance from Fairleigh Dickinson University. This formal education combined with over 30 years of experience as a forensic accountant has provided him with the opportunity to investigate, prepare reports, and testify in more than 2000 cases.

Robert’s education and experience led to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) requesting that he help develop and become a subject matter expert for the Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) exam. The CFF exam is widely considered the most important credential a forensic accountant can obtain in the United States and throughout the world. Robert was one of a small group of forensic accountants selected as the original developers, writers and reviewers for the exams.

He has been appointed by many judges and appeared in most counties throughout New Jersey. In addition, he has been retained nationally on many complex legal matters. Robert has consulted and testified for both plaintiffs and defendants. He has testified in mediations, arbitrations and appeared as an expert witness at many trials for both criminal and civil matters. His testimony includes business valuation, Eichleay Formula calculations, fraud examination, matrimonial issues, damage assessment, lost profits calculations, shareholder disputes, malpractice actions, intangible valuations, mergers & acquisitions, criminal assets seizures, NJ Conscientious Employee Protection Act (NJ- CEPA) and sale of businesses.

PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS    

• CPA: Certified Public Accountant, Licensed in New Jersey,
• PFS: Personal Financial Specialist,
• CVA: Certified Valuation Analyst,
• ABV: Accredited in Business Valuation designated by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2004.
• ASA: Associate of American Society of Appraisers, 2006.
• CFE: Certified Fraud Examiner,
• CFF: Certified in Financial Forensics,
• CGMA: Chartered Global Accountant,
• FVM: Wall Street Prep,
• STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: Graduate Level Certificate, Harvard 2020

EDUCATION

• Corporate Finance. Harvard University Extension School, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
• Masters of Business Administration/Finance. Fairleigh Dickinson University, Madison, New Jersey, 1992.
• Bachelor of Science, Business Administration/Accounting. Montclair State University, Montclair, New Jersey, 1984.

PARTIAL APPRAISAL AND LITIGATION EDUCATION

• All Day Tax and Valuation Seminar. North Branch, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 1999.
• Surgent’s Annual Tax Planning Guide for S Corporations. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 1999.
• Valuation Ethics, Standards & Reporting. Salt Lake City, Utah, National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, 1999.
• Fair Value & Marketability Discounts. Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Personal Financial Planning Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 1999.
• The New IRS & Your Practice Strategic Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 1999.
• Current Developments in Law: Expert Witness Testimony. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 1999.
• Taxation-Valuation. Saddle Brook, New Jersey, Center for Professional Education,
• How to Facilitate Strategic Planning. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• The Forensic Accountant’s Involvement with Personal Injury Claims. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2000.
• Pertinent Aspects of the Daubert Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2001.
• Valuation Issues in Divorce Settlings. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2001.
• Case Analysis by Salt Lake City, Utah, National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, 2001.
• Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2002.
• New Jersey Business Accounting and Technology Show. Secaucus, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2002.
• Leadership Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2002.
• What Forensic Accountants Need to Know About Oppression. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2002.
• Matrimonial Litigation Matters. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Valuations of S Corporations. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Trial Techniques Every Lawyer Should Atlantic City, New Jersey, New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2002.
• Standards of Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2003.
• What CPA’s Involved in Litigation Support Should Know. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2003.
• 15 Hour National USPAP Course. Secaucus, New Jersey, The Appraisal Foundation,
• Expert Testimony. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• National Business Valuation Conference. Orlando, Florida, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2004.
• Divorce Conference. Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Business Valuations and Damage Modeling in Determining. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• New Jersey Business Accounting and Technology Show. Secaucus, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• Valuation of a Medical Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• Excel Valuation Budgeting Techniques. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• Transaction Method-Business Broker Method vs. Current. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• Litigation Support/Valuation Services West Orange, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2005.
• National Business Valuation Conference. Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and American Society of Appraisers, 2005.
• Standard of Value Revisited. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Cost of Capital Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2006.
• Forensic Accounting in Valuation Engagements. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2006.
• Divorce Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Education Foundation, 2006.
• National Conference on Fraud and Litigation Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Investigating Check Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Civil and Criminal Liability in Performing Fraud Investigations. Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants,
• Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Fraud Risk Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Government Fraud and Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Surveillance and Security in the Gaming Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2006.
• Litigation Support/Valuation Services Conference. Edison, New Jersey, NJSCPA Education Foundation, 2006.
• ATLA-NJ Education Seminar. Atlantic City, New Jersey, Association of Trial Lawyers of America-New Jersey Educational Foundation, 2007
• Litigation Support/Damages Conference. Woodbridge, New Jersey, NJSCPA Education Foundation, 2007.
• ATLA-NJ Education Seminar. Atlantic City, New Jersey, Association of Trial Lawyers of America-New Jersey Educational Foundation, 2008.
• Divorce Practitioners Conference. Edison, New Jersey, The Barson Group, PA and Gold Meltzer Plasky & Wise, 2008.
• National Fraud and Litigation Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2008.
• Valuation Conference. Woodbridge, New Jersey, NACVA New Jersey State Chapter,
• NJAJ Boardwalk Deposition Atlantic City, New Jersey, New Jersey Association for Justice, 2009.
• Alimony – The Nuances of Atlantic City, New Jersey, New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting, 2009.
• Alimony Guidelines – Should New Jersey Adopt a Formula Approach for Spousal Atlantic City, New Jersey, New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting, May, 2009.
• Financial Forensic Credential (CFF). Contributing Author; American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, May,
• Grabowski on Cost of Capital: An Webinar, November 30, 2010.
• New Jersey Family Law Practice – The NJICLE, March, 2012.
• AICPA/AAML National Conference of Divorce. Las Vegas, Nevada, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, May, 2012.
• University of Michigan Finance Update, May, 2013.
• Princeton University Statistics Update, September, 2013.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, January 8, 2013.
• Valuation of Businesses with a Value of Less Than 5 Valuation Services LLC, February 13, 2013.
• Advanced PowerPoint and Word Training for Litigation.com, February 21, 2013.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, April 29, 2013.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, July 10, 2013.
• Budgeting for Linda.com, July 2, 2013.
• Advanced Formulas for Udemy.com, September 21, 2013.
• R for Udemy.com, August 5, 2013.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, September 25, 2013.
• Financial Forensics Question Writing and AICPA, January 31, 2014.
• Advanced University of Pennsylvania, January 7, 2014.
• Investment Making Udemy.com, January 15, 2014.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, January 8, 2014.
• Fast Udemy.com, January 7, 2014.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, May 7, 2014.
• QuickBooks for Forensic Accounting. com, June 13, 2014.
• University of California, June 18, 2014.
• Financial Udemy.com, June 22, 2014.
• Fraudulent Reporting and Concealed Assets. NJCPA, June 26,
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, November 6, 2014.
• Corporate Finance Essentials. IASE Business School Barcelona Spain, November 19, 2014.
• Negotiation University of Michigan, December 10, 2014.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, January 22, 2015.
• University of California, January 5, 2015.
• Forensic Accounting and Fraud Examination. West Virginia University, January 12, 2015.
• Marketing for Business University of Pennsylvania, May 25, 2015.
• Current Divorce Divorce Practitioners Conference, May 21, 2015.
• Quickbooks Best Practices, Accounting Show, May 13, 2015
• Accounting University of Pennsylvania, June 8, 2015.
• Accounting University of Pennsylvania, June 8, 2015
• Managerial Accounting; Cause Behaviors, Systems and Analysis University of Illinois June 25, 2015
• PowerPoint and Excel Fusion, Udemy, February 14, 2016
• University of Michigan, February 18, 2016.
• Ancient philosophy: Plato and his predecessors, University of Penn, March 7, 2016
• Bankruptcy Fraud, Fraud Seminar, May 17, 2016
• Fraud Prevention And Detection Methods For Small Businesses, Fraud Seminar, May 17, 2016
• Financial Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, September 5, 2016.
• Project The Basics For Success, UCI extension, September 15, 2016
• The Art of Negotiation, UCI extension, October 13, 2016
• Effective Business Presentations with Powerpoint, PWC May 17, 2017
• Speaking To Inform, University of Washington, March 30, 2017
• Corporate Finance Certificate, Harvard University May 24, 2018
• Crypto Accounting in The Business World, accounting and finance show, July 11, 2018
• Divorce Practitioners Conference, August 1, 2018
• Hitchner’s Annual New Jersey Business Valuation Update, January 21, 2019
• Divorce Practitioners Conference, May 22, 2019
• Divorce Practitioners Conference, October 23^rd 2019
• Business Valuation Litigation Services Conference, September 24, 2019
• Federal Fiduciary Income Tax Workshop, Education , December 12, 2019
• Certificate of Awesomeness, Harvard University, July 26, 2020
• Harvard University, Strategic Management Certificate, August 26, 2020
• Litigation Report Workshop, NACV, October 26, 2020
• Legal Research Skills, Udemy, October 10, 2020
• New Jersey Forensic Accountant, YouTube Videos 2020 through 2022
• Harvard University Graduate Classes, Cambridge Massachusetts 2020-2022

LECTURER

• ABC’s of Valuation. New Brunswick, New Jersey, New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2002.
• Brown v. Brown: The Most Important Equitable Distribution Decision Since Painter. Roseland, New Jersey, New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education,
• Litigation Services and Business Roseland, New Jersey, New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2002.
• Business Valuation Conference. Iselin, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education,
• Forensic Scotch Plains, New Jersey, Union County Magnet High School, 2004.
• Transaction Method – Business Broker Method vs. Current Valuation Methodology. Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Valuation & Litigation Services Interest Group, 2005.
• Forensic Scotch Plains, New Jersey, Union County Magnet High School, 2005.
• Economic Roseland, New Jersey, NJSCPA Continuing Professional Education, 2006.
• How to Effectively Testify on Economic Ernst & Young, Iselin, New Jersey, Litigation Support and Forensic Accounting Interest Group, 2007.
• Litigation and Forensic Accounting www.rabcpafirm.com 2014-2016.
• Business Valuation Litigation Services Conference, Matrimonial Engagements, September 24, 2019
• New Jersey Forensic Accountant, YouTube Videos, 2020 through current date

INSTRUCTOR

• How to Value Your Business. Westfield, New Jersey, Robert A. Bonavito, CPA C., 2001.
• Case National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, 2003.
• Union County Cranford, New Jersey, Adjunct Professor advanced accounting and finance courses.
• Ask the Newspaper column, Forbes Newspaper
• New Jersey Forensic Accountant, YouTube videos 2020

ORGANIZATIONS

• New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
• The Institute of Business Appraisers
• National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts
• The Venture Association of New Jersey
• American Society of Appraisers
• Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
• Harvard Extension School Alumni Association

COMMITTEE SERVICE

• Retired Chairman of the Litigation Services Committee for the New Jersey Society of Certified Public
• Retired Director of the Union County Chapter of Certified Public
• Retired Chairman of the Forensic Directory for the New Jersey Society of Certified Public
• Conference Committee for the New Jersey Society of Certified Public
• New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants Matrimonial
• New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants Litigation Support
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; Financial Forensics Credential (CFF), Subject Matter Expert Committee.
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; CFF Credential Committee Board