The former chief executive of Comverse Technology Inc., who was charged last week with conspiracy related to backdating stock options, is now being regarded as a fugitive by the federal government.

Depending on what report you read, and how the statistics get manipulated, the Internal Revenue Service gets a grade somewhere between tremendous and embarrassing for its work auditing the returns of wealthy taxpayers.

Erik R. Sirri, an economist with expertise in the structure of securities markets, has been named the new director of market regulation at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced plans to create its own Web tools to allow investors and analysts to manipulate interactive data to analyze mutual fund and corporate information.

Have you ever monitored the progress of a large municipal construction project and noted how many times the completion deadline is pushed back?

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged former Endocare Inc. chief executive Paul Mikus and chief financial officer John V. Cracchiolo with accounting fraud.

Yep, it's that time of the year again! CPA Wealth Provider is calling for nominations for its Fourth Annual Financial Planning Awards in any of the following categories: CPA/Financial Planning Firms, Broker/Dealers, and Financial Planning Software Vendors.

A trio of professional groups have joined forces to launch a research project to explore user perceptions of financial statement audits and auditor reports.

Nine of the 18 insurance firms that provide variable annuities through financial advisors affiliated with Raymond James Financial Inc. will begin offering new, less expensive investment products this week, meeting a deadline set by the financial services firm.

Pay to corporate directors grew at a slower rate in 2005, compared to the previous year, according to a study by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.

As expected, the Securities and Exchange Commission will likely grant smaller public companies and most foreign private issuers an extension on having to comply with the internal controls provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Fannie Mae said that it believes its internal accounting review is finally over, and that its anticipated restatement will be much less than its previous $2.4 billion estimates.

The Securities and Exchange Commission won't challenge a federal appeals court ruling overturning independence rules for hedge fund directors.

The Internal Revenue Service needs to do a better job on its partnership examinations, according to a new report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Martha Stewart and Peter Bacanovic -- of domestic multimedia empire and ImClone Systems stock trading fame -- have agreed to settle civil charges of insider trading brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

While audits of high-income taxpayers have increased, the actual impact on compliance may be limited, according to a new report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

The Institute of Internal Auditors has established a Canadian Council, a group of 18 members from throughout the country, to address issues specific to the region's internal auditors.

Agents won't be allowed to challenge whether casino comps to high-rolling patrons qualify for treatment as promotional expenses, according to a memo released by the Large and Mid-Size Business Division of the Internal Revenue Service.

Following the old saw that "What goes up must come down" - and vice versa - advisors who employ a strategy of buying cheap like it when market sectors decline.By the same token, some economic-minded advisors are continually on the lookout for market laggards in the expectation that the next swing might trend upward. Top performers over the recent past are the likely suspects for future price declines, say experts.

Several issues ago, I wrote of how the Enron and WorldCom debacles more or less defined my tenure as editor-in-chief at Accounting Today.Much like a stubborn barnacle appended to the bottom of a garbage scow, the serial dramas continued for nearly five years, influencing much of the content within these pages, and no doubt future editorial as well. With the recent appointment of a new chair in Mark Olson at the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, I realized that my contact with the PCAOB has lasted nearly as long.