2026 Hubbard Award: Rick Warne, Ph.D., CFE, CPA; Kimberly Charron, Ph.D., CPA, CMA; and Robert Cornell, Ph.D., CMA

The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) annually presents the Hubbard Award to the author or authors of the best feature article in Fraud Magazine, as decided by the ACFE Editorial Advisory Committee. This award honors the late Regent Emeritus Thomas Hubbard, Ph.D., CFE, a former chair of the ACFE's Continuing Education Committee.

The Hubbard Award recognizes articles that make significant contributions to anti-fraud education, professional practice and industry knowledge.

This year's recipients are Rick Warne, Ph.D., CFE, CPA; Kimberly Charron, Ph.D., CPA, CMA; and Robert Cornell, Ph.D., CMA for their article, "AI can simplify complexity in litigation support," published in the September/October 2025 issue of Fraud Magazine.

In their article, Warne, Charron and Cornell explore how artificial intelligence can help accounting experts and fraud examiners communicate increasingly complex financial evidence in litigation matters. As courts and investigations encounter growing amounts of financial data, their article demonstrates how AI tools can analyze information more efficiently and translate complex accounting concepts into language that is more accessible to judges and juries.

The article also addresses challenges and risks associated with AI adoption, including accuracy concerns, confidentiality issues and ethical considerations. Their balanced assessment provides practical guidance on where AI can enhance litigation support while understanding that human expertise remains essential.

Rick Warne, Ph.D., CFE, CPA, is a professor of accounting at the University of San Diego's Knauss School of Business, where he focuses on auditing, accounting litigation and fraud theory. He previously worked for the Utah State Auditor's Office and helped uncover what was then the largest fraud involving public funds in Utah history. He later served as an academic fellow in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of the Chief Accountant and has published in journals including Contemporary Accounting Research, Review of Accounting Studies and Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory.

Kimberly Charron, Ph.D., CPA, CMA, is an associate professor of accounting and graduate coordinator for the Master of Science in Accounting program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She has published in journals including Accounting Horizons, Accounting Forum and Strategic Finance. She is also an active member of the Institute of Management Accountants. Charron has received numerous honors for her work, including the IMA Lybrand Gold Medal for Outstanding Research Paper and the 2008 LBS Teaching Excellence Award.

Robert Cornell, Ph.D., CMA, is an associate professor of accounting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His research specialties include fraud and forensic investigation, auditing, public policy, professional judgment and decision-making. He has served as an expert witness in state and federal court proceedings and regularly studies issues related to fraud, litigation and accounting.

The 2026 Hubbard Award will be presented at the 37th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference, July 12-17, 2026, held in Boston, Massachusetts, and virtually.