Audit & Accounting

Just over a year after his acquittal on charges of overseeing a $2.7 billion accounting fraud as the head of health care company HealthSouth Corp., Richard Scrushy was found guilty on charges of bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has won the court battle over the first billion-dollar financial fraud it ever tackled, a case filed against the former chief financial officer of Waste Management Inc. back in March 2002.

Shareholders of a company that went bankrupt after a fraud by some officers can sue its accounting firm on charges it failed to detect the fraud, New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled this week.

Defense contractor Raytheon Co. and two of its former top executives have settled improper accounting charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Securities giant Morgan Stanley will pay a $10 million fine to the Se curities and Exchange Commission after failing to maintain safeguards to prevent the misuse of inside information.

A judge has ruled that it was unconstitutional pressure from the government that led KPMG to place a cap on how much of the legal tab it would pick up for 16 former employees facing federal charges over the sale of questionable tax shelters.

More companies are using "continuous auditing" techniques, which are designed to use technology to accelerate the internal audit cycle and improve risk and control assurance, according to a new study from PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The Siegfried Group and AccountAbilities bear watching. They are two examples of what I expect to be a growing trend--entities entering into arrangements to provide staff to CPA firms on a retainer type of basis. The idea is that if a firm doesn't have enough internal staff for an engagement, the entity will provide the necessary seasoned staff and expertise.

A federal appeals court has dealt a serious blow to the Securities and Exchange Commission's plans to more closely regulate hedge funds.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board will hold two public roundtable meetings today to discuss the board's proposal to improve accounting for postretirement benefit plans, including pensions.