Oversight Board Gearing Up

The new accounting oversight board is getting ready to launch its own inspections of accounting firms, taking over the peer review process from the American Institute of CPAs as part of its mandate from the Sarbanes-Oxley law.

The independent board said it plans to have its staff and organization in order by the week of Jan. 6 and start inspections sometime after that. One board member, Kayla Gillan, said firms should expect an increase in the number of investigations in the coming year.

Whether the AICPA will continue to play a role in peer review is an unanswered question, but the board did invite a representative to their latest meeting to provide background on the institute’s SEC Practice Section.

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