scholarly journals Comments of the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on IESBA Consultation Paper: Improving the Structure of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. C12-C17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory B. Gaynor ◽  
Diane J. Janvrin ◽  
Marshall K. Pittman ◽  
Mikhail B. Pevzner ◽  
Lourdes Ferreira White
Keyword(s):  
Code Of Ethics ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
International Ethics ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Consultation Paper ◽  
Structure Code

SUMMARY Recently, the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) solicited public comments on its Consultation Paper, Improving the Structure of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. This commentary summarizes the contributors' views on the various questions asked in the IESBA Consultation Paper. Our comments submitted to IESBA appear below. Data Availability: The invitation to comment (which invited comments through February 4, 2015), with links to the consultation paper, is available at: http://www.ifac.org/publications-resources/improving-structure-code-ethics-professional-accountants/.

Comments by the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on the IESBA ED Release (August 14, 2014), Proposed Changes to Certain Provisions of the Code Addressing the Long Association of Personnel with an Audit or Assurance Client

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. C18-C22
Author(s):  
Willie E. Gist ◽  
Urton L. Anderson ◽  
Diane J. Janvrin ◽  
Marshall K. Pitman
Keyword(s):  
Public Interest ◽  
Code Of Ethics ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
International Ethics ◽  
Audit Firm ◽  
Auditing Standards

SUMMARY On August 14, 2014 the International Ethics Standard Board for Accountants (IESBA) requested public comments to its Exposure Draft (ED) (IFAC 2014a) on proposed changes to the 2014 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (IFAC 2014b). The proposal aims to enhance the independence provisions of the Code to respond to threats that may be created by using the same audit firm personnel for audit or assurance engagements over an extended period of time. Among other things, the amendments would require (1) strengthened general provisions for all audits threatened by a long association of firm personnel, and (2) an increase in the mandatory “cooling-off” period, from two to five years, for the engagement partner on the audit of a public interest entity. The comment period ended November 12, 2014. This commentary summarizes the contributors' views on selected proposals in the ED. Data Availability: The Exposure Draft and related request for specific comments are available at: http://www.ethicsboard.org. Paragraph referencing in the ED is extracted from the Code, set out in the 2014 Handbook of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, available at: https://www.ifac.org/ethics/iesba-code/.

Comments by the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on the IESBA Proposal, Responding to a Suspected Illegal Act

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. C21-C29
Author(s):  
Mary B. Curtis ◽  
Kurt J. Pany ◽  
Mikhail Pevzner ◽  
Jesse C. Robertson ◽  
Jian Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Code Of Ethics ◽  
International Ethics ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Illegal Acts

SUMMARY Recently, the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) solicited public comments on their proposal to revise their standard of reporting on suspected illegal acts. This commentary summarizes the contributors' views on the various alternatives proposed in the IESBA proposal entitled, Responding to a Suspected Illegal Act. The exposure draft (which invited comments through December 15, 2012) can be found at http://www.ifac.org/sites/default/files/publications/files/IESBA-Code-of-Ethics-Illegal-Acts-Exposure-Draft.pdf. Our comments submitted to the IESBA appear below.

scholarly journals Comments of the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on PCAOB Staff Consultation Paper, Auditing Accounting Estimates and Fair Value Measurements

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. C1-C11 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Abernathy ◽  
Karl E. Hackenbrack ◽  
Jennifer R. Joe ◽  
Mikhail Pevzner ◽  
Yi-Jing Wu
Keyword(s):  
Fair Value ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Public Companies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Accounting Estimates ◽  
Fair Value Measurements ◽  
Consultation Paper

SUMMARY Recently, the Public Companies Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) solicited public comments on its Staff Consultation Paper Auditing Accounting Estimates and Fair Value Measurements. This commentary summarizes the contributors' views on the various questions asked in the PCAOB Staff Consultation Paper. Our comments submitted to the PCAOB appear below. Data Availability: The invitation to comment (which invited comments through November 4, 2014), with links to the consultation paper, is available at: http://pcaobus.org/Standards/Pages/SCP _ Accounting _ Estimates _ Fair_Value.aspx

scholarly journals Comments by the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on the International Monitoring Group Consultation, Strengthening the Governance and Oversight of the International Audit-Related Standard-Setting Boards in the Public Interest

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. C1-C10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denise Dickins ◽  
Marcus M. Doxey ◽  
Marshall A. Geiger ◽  
Christine Nolder ◽  
Pamela B. Roush
Keyword(s):  
Public Interest ◽  
Standard Setting ◽  
Accounting Education ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
International Accounting ◽  
International Ethics ◽  
The Public ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Monitoring Group ◽  
International Audit

SUMMARY On November 9, 2017, the Monitoring Group (MG) overseeing international auditing standards issued a request for comment on its consultation paper (CP), Strengthening the Governance and Oversight of the International Audit-Related Standard-Setting Boards in the Public Interest. The CP presents a broad array of proposals to reform and restructure the three current auditing standard-setting groups it oversees (International Accounting and Assurance Standards Board [IAASB], International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants [IESBA], and International Accounting Education Standards Board [IAESB]). The CP suggests combining the three boards into a single board, and solicited public comment on the following areas: (1) key areas of overall concern, (2) guiding principles, (3) options for reform of the standard-setting boards, (4) options for the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB), (5) role of the monitoring group, (6) administration, including Standard-Setting Board staff, (7) process considerations, and (8) funding. The comment period ended on February 9, 2018. This commentary summarizes the participating committee members' views on selected questions for respondents posed by the MG. Data Availability: The concept release, including questions for respondents, is available at: https://www.iosco.org/library/pubdocs/pdf/IOSCOPD586.pdf

scholarly journals The Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association is Pleased to Provide Comments on PCAOB Staff Consultation Paper No. 2015-01, The Auditor's Use of the Work of Specialists

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. C18-C37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer R. Joe ◽  
Diane J. Janvrin ◽  
Dereck Barr-Pulliam ◽  
Stephani Mason ◽  
Marshall K. Pitman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Availability ◽  
Accounting Firms ◽  
Economic Implications ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Company ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Potential Improvement ◽  
Consultation Paper ◽  
Current Practices

SUMMARY On May 28, 2015 the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (hereafter, the Board) issued Staff Consultation Paper No. 2015-01 (hereafter, the Staff Consultation Paper) to seek information and input on the potential need to improve standards related to the auditor's use of the work of specialists. The Board requested input from investors, accounting firms, specialists, companies, and others (such as academics) about (1) current practices, (2) the potential need for changes, and (3) possible alternative regulatory approaches, and any associated economic implications, for potential improvement in standards related to oversight and assessing the objectivity of employed and engaged specialists. The comment period ended July 31, 2015. This commentary summarizes the contributors' views on selected questions posed in the Staff Consultation Paper. Data Availability: The invitation to comment (through July 31, 2015), with links to the Consultation Paper, is available at: http://www.pcaobus.org/Standards/Pages/SCP_Specialists.aspx

scholarly journals Comments of the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board Exposure Draft, Proposed International Standard on Auditing 315 (Revised): Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement and Proposed Consequential and Conforming Amendments to Other ISAs

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. C1-C9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veena Looknanan Brown ◽  
Paul J. Coram ◽  
Sean A. Dennis ◽  
Denise Dickins ◽  
Christine E. Earley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Professional Skepticism ◽  
International Standard ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Explicit Recognition ◽  
Automated Tools ◽  
Tools And Techniques

SUMMARY On July 16, 2018, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (the Board or IAASB) issued a request for comment on its Exposure Draft, Proposed International Standard on Auditing 315 (Revised): Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement and Proposed Consequential and Conforming Amendments to Other ISAs (ED-315). Major enhancements proposed include explicit recognition of the auditor's use of automated tools and techniques, requiring an understanding of an auditee's use of information technology relevant to financial reporting, acknowledging the influence of an entity's complexity on the audit plan, and increasing the emphasis on the need for professional skepticism. The comment period ended on November 2, 2018. This commentary summarizes the participating committee members' views on selected questions posed by the IAASB. Data Availability: ED-315, including questions for respondents, is available at: https://www.ifac.org/publications-resources/exposure-draft-isa-315-revised-identifying-and-assessing-risks-material.

scholarly journals Auditor Style and Financial Statement Comparability

2013 ◽  
Vol 89 (2) ◽  
pp. 605-633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jere R. Francis ◽  
Matthew L. Pinnuck ◽  
Olena Watanabe
Keyword(s):  
Data Availability ◽  
Financial Statement ◽  
Audit Firm ◽  
Internal Working ◽  
Big 4 ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Reported Earnings ◽  
Working Rules

ABSTRACT The term “audit style” is used to characterize the unique set of internal working rules of each Big 4 audit firm for the implementation of auditing standards and the enforcement of GAAP within their clienteles. Audit style implies that two companies audited by the same Big 4 auditor, subject to the same audit style, are more likely to have comparable earnings than two firms audited by two different Big 4 firms with different styles. By comparable we mean that two firms in the same industry and year will have a more similar accruals and earnings structure. For a sample of U.S. companies for the period 1987 to 2011, we find evidence consistent with audit style increasing the comparability of reported earnings within a Big 4 auditor's clientele. Data Availability: All data are publicly available from the sources identified in the text.

scholarly journals Comments of the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on Proposed Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements, Amendments to the Description of the Concept of Materiality

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. C20-C22
Author(s):  
Sean Dennis ◽  
Denise Dickins ◽  
Christine E. Earley ◽  
Julia L. Higgs
Keyword(s):  
Financial Statements ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Certified Public Accountants ◽  
American Institute ◽  
Economic Decisions ◽  
Auditing Standards ◽  
Public Accountants

SUMMARY In June 2019, the Auditing Standards Board (the Board) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants issued a request for comment on its Proposed Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements, Amendments to the Description of the Concept of Materiality (the Proposal), which seeks to change the criteria for determining whether omissions or misstatements rise to the level of materially misstating financial statements from those that could reasonably be expected to influence economic decisions of a user, to those where there is a substantial likelihood that they would influence the judgment of a reasonable user. The comment period ends August 5, 2019. This commentary summarizes the participating committee members' views on feedback requested by the Board. Data Availability: The Proposal, including questions for respondents, is available at: https://www.aicpa.org/content/dam/aicpa/research/exposuredrafts/accountingandauditing/downloadabledocuments/20190605a/20190605a-ed-sas-ssae-materiality.pdf.

scholarly journals Can a Code of Ethics Improve Manager Behavior and Investor Confidence? An Experimental Study

2012 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce I. Davidson ◽  
Douglas E. Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Social Norms ◽  
Code Of Ethics ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Investor Confidence ◽  
Theoretical Support ◽  
Return Behavior ◽  
Manager Behavior

ABSTRACT: Policy makers and corporations have recently emphasized a code of ethics as an effective aspect of corporate governance. The corporate governance literature in accounting, however, provides little empirical or theoretical support for this emphasis. We address this gap between public policy and the literature by studying the effectiveness of a code of ethics in an experimental setting. Using Bicchieri's (2006) model of social norm activation, we predict that a code of ethics will improve manager return behavior and investor confidence to the extent that it activates social norms that control opportunistic behavior. Further, we predict that adding a certification choice whereby the manager can publicly certify that he will adhere to the code will enhance the potential for the code of ethics to activate such norms. We find that a code of ethics only improves manager return behavior and investor confidence when the code incorporates a public certification choice by the manager. When the code is present but there is no certification choice, manager return behavior does not improve and investor confidence erodes over time because of increased expectations that are not met by managers. An analysis of individual return decisions and exit questionnaire responses supports the activation of social norms as the underlying mechanism behind our results. Data Availability: Experimental data are available from the authors upon request.

scholarly journals Comments by the Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association on the PCAOB Rulemaking Docket Matter 029: PCAOB Release No. 2011-007, Improving Transparency Through Disclosure of Engagement Partner and Certain Other Participants in Audits

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. C1-C6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith L. Jones ◽  
Jagadison K. Aier ◽  
Duane M. Brandon ◽  
Tina D. Carpenter ◽  
Paul Caster ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Exposure Period ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Audit Report ◽  
Public Accounting ◽  
Accounting Firms ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Comment ◽  
Public Company ◽  
Public Accounting Firms ◽  
Auditing Standards

SUMMARY In October 2011, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB or Board) issued a release to solicit public comment on amendments to its standards that would improve the transparency of pubic company audits. The objective of the release was to solicit public comments on a proposed standard that would (1) require registered public accounting firms to disclose the name of the engagement partner in the audit report, (2) amend the Board's Annual Report Form to require registered firms to disclose the name of the engagement partner for each audit report already required to be reported on the form, and (3) require disclosure in the audit report of other independent public accounting firms and other persons that took part in the audit. The PCAOB provided for a 91-day exposure period (from October 11, 2011, to January 9, 2012) for interested parties to examine the release and provide comments. The Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association provided the comments in the letter below to the PCAOB on PCAOB Rulemaking Docket Matter 029: PCAOB Release No. 2011-007, Improving Transparency Through Disclosure of Engagement Partner and Certain Other Participants in Audits. Data Availability: Information about and access to the release is available at: http://pcaobus.org/Rules/Rulemaking/Docket029/PCAOB_Release_2011-007.pdf

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