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Clean Audit Reports: Mission Impossible?

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‘CLEAN AUDIT REPORTS’: MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?

The beginning of the 21st century was marked by major corporate collapses that jeopardised the reputation of the big Accounting and Auditing firms, questioning the very foundations of financial reporting and corporate governance. In a very short period of time, millions of dollars were wiped off the financial statements of major corporations, and the world saw giants collapse as large amounts of money were proven to exist only in paper. Even though fraud was found to be the constant variable in each case, the causes of the main collapses were determined to be related to corporate governance in general, and corrective measures were taken to improve that. However not many people questioned the fact that most of the money that existed only in paper was in those financial statements as a result of accounting practices that were legitimate and professionally accepted, meaning that auditors were not able to see the realities of these companies as they happened to be hidden under financial statements that strictly complied with accounting standards.
The aim of this essay is to discuss why auditors are not able to read a company’s true financial position and performance from the financial statements since all they are able to do is state whether or not those statements comply with the Accounting Standards. The purpose of financial reporting and accounting information will be discussed, as well as the reason why the profession believes standards are necessary. It will also be proven that complying with the standards does not guarantee that the data generated will reflect the true position of the company, which potentially renders it unserviceable for the needs it is meant to meet. Finally, the ideal role of auditors is discussed as well as why they are not able to do much to fulfil it under the current circumstances.
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