Audit

The Center for Audit Quality and several corporate governance organizations and companies have created a new online auditor evaluation tool to help the audit committees on corporate boards evaluate their auditing firms.

The American Institute of CPAs has issued Technical Practice Aids with information to help insurance entities with their accounting.

An accounting construct known as permanently reinvested earnings is helping U.S.-based multinational corporations keep tens of billions of dollars in profits overseas, according to a new study.

Audit confirmation service provider Confirmation.com has enhanced its latest product release through a complete redesign of the auditor's platform, a new paper fulfillment service and a batch upload capability.

Though Laura Wood leads a busy life as a designated Enrolled Agent and cofounder, with her husband, of Florida-based National Accounting and Management Services, or NAMS, the October Accountant of the Month doesn’t forget to stop and smell the roses. In fact, she makes a point of it, when flying above them in her powered parachute.

The Institute of Internal Auditors has released the syllabus for qualifying for its new Certification in Risk Management Assurance.

The Center for Audit Quality issued a practice aid Wednesday to encourage audit firms to proactively communicate with audit committees about inspection findings and quality control improvements.

Accounting standards may play a significant role in shaping cross-border mergers and acquisitions, according to a recently released academic study.

The American Institute of CPAs’ Financial Reporting Executive Committee, or FinREC, sent a letter to the Financial Accounting Standards Board raising issues with a proposed Accounting Standards Update, Financial Instruments (Topic 825), Disclosures about Liquidity Risk and Interest Rate Risk.

A new nonprofit organization plans to establish industry-specific accounting standards for corporate sustainability reporting.

The submission period for our Accountant of the Month contest for this month ends on October 17 -- which means you still have time to enter!

The District of Columbia is now permitting out-of-state CPAs to practice in Washington, D.C., without obtaining a separate license.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Institute of Management Accountants have released a study naming 100 factors that will create uncertainty for accountants in the future.

The Institute of Internal Auditors has announced that a set of revisions will be made to internal auditing standards, taking effect at the beginning of next year.

Christine Freeland, founder of Christine Z. Freeland,was chosen as the 2012 Accountant of the Year Award from the National Society of Accountants.

Big Four firm Ernst & Young reported that its combined global revenues for fiscal 2012 rose 6.7 percent in U.S. dollars, to $24.4 billion, from $22.9 billion in 2011. Revenues grew even faster in local currencies, at 7.6 percent.

The Accreditation Council for Accountancy and Taxation has unveiled its fall 2012 exam schedule for accountants, tax preparers and students looking to earn the Accredited Tax Advisor, Accredited Retirement Advisor or Accredited Business Accountant/Advisor credentials.

Our August column ("Debunking lease propaganda by CPAs in Congress, and others, too," page 22) dismantled an early barrage of the kind of self-serving arguments the Financial Accounting Standards Board will hear once it issues its exposure draft on lease accounting. This month, we explain how the board can produce a successful lease standard through a straightforward analysis different from the status quo.

Audit and attest news from the previous month

Lessons for auditors from the Peregrine scandal