...Repeal It is logical to believe that Sarbanes Oxley Act, Dodd Frank Act and JOBS Act exists for a reason. Although politic is a very complicated topic and has some sort of influence in establishing a new federal law, SOX, Dodd Frank Act and JOBS Act are reasonably justifiable. After WorldCom and Enron incidents, Sarbanes Oxley Act was established to regulate auditors and public company. After Late 2000’s mortgage crisis and others, Dodd-Frank and JOBS Act was established to regulate financial industry under federal government. Federal regulation seems like always came after a big crisis or downfalls to fix the issue and hopefully prevent future reoccurrence. However, federal government looked like a little bit too reactive because the regulations were always enacted after something bad happened. To make the matter worse, there is no way to proactively prevent any or all frauds or misconducts from happening due to their variety of types. In order to discuss should Sarbanes Oxley, Dodd Frank and JOBS Act be repealed, let’s look into each Act individually and in a more detail sense, In Sarbanes Oxley, some of the important aspects that SOX 2002 deals with are auditor independence and enhanced financial disclosures. It also established Public Company Accounting Oversight Broad (PCAOB) to monitor and oversee public firm’s financial activities. Because there was lack of Audit regulations, it later leaded to the big Enron fraud. Therefore it was clear that something has to be done...
Words: 644 - Pages: 3
...Are the Dodd Frank Act Whistleblowing Measures Effective? Whistleblowing in the Financial Markets: Name: Professor: Course: Date: In the wake of the Global-Financial Crisis there have been various strategies employed to improve corporate governance, but the main question to ask will they work? The expansion of whistleblower bounties under s.992 of the Dodd-Frank Act 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act) has been one such measure. This measure has been identified as significantly controversial, because it is superseding the traditional internal reporting processes (Schuman & Keating, 2011). The Dodd-Frank Amendment Act that was introduced in 2011 was an attempt to mitigate the potential harm that offering bounties to whistleblowers may have; albeit it seems to be side-lined through consultation processes. Thus, the following research will explore if the bounty provisions are a necessary and effective tool to increase supervision within financial institutions. The concept of “Whistleblower” needs to be identified before moving on in this discussion. The concept relates to a company insider reporting to an appropriate body when there are actions that are breaching the law or acting unethically (Kohn, 2011). Thus, whistleblowing and corporate governance are intrinsically linked. The indications are that the use of monetary incentives is not the most effective model to enforce whistleblowing as an effective deterrent, which can be supported by the poor statistical reception under the...
Words: 2617 - Pages: 11
...Sarbanes-Oxley act and the Dodd-Frank act have attempted to reinforce and uphold the single most important virtue that our capitalist society so desperately depends on, trust. Many of the following names are familiar to us all by now, and for the wrong reasons: Enron, Lehman Brothers, World-Com, and Tyco. So what have SOX and DOD actually accomplished for our capitalist society? What can they actually do to help avert such catastrophic situations in the future? Let us begin with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Under the watchful eye of the Securities Exchange Commission the Sarbanes-Oxley act strives to protect the investing public from fraudulent and erroneous accounting practices, in addition to improving the accuracy of public financial statements. The act has transformed the world of accounting by: creating the PCAOB (Title I), increasing an auditor’s independence (Title II), increasing the responsibility/liability of a company’s senior management (Title III), enhanced financial statement disclosure requirements (Title IV), eliminating analyst conflicts of interest (Section V), increasing corporate and criminal fraud accountability (Section VIII), enhancing white–collar crime penalties (Title IX), increasing the responsibility/liability for corporate tax returns (Title X), and increasing the responsibility for corporate fraud and accountability (Title XI). There are several more provisions that comprise the act, but those mentioned are the “heavy hitters” of SOX. The PCAOB’s...
Words: 3898 - Pages: 16
...SNITCHING FOR RICHES: WHISTLEBLOWER BOUNTIES AND THE $96 MILLION CHERYL ECKARD SETTLEMENT Introduction Bounties have been employed by United States government over the history of our Nation. As differentiated from rewards, which offer payment for accomplishment of a specific act such as providing information that leads to the capture of a particular criminal, bounties are tailored to encourage the services or actions by some class of persons in pursuance of a governmental purpose. One of the earliest examples in the United States is the grant of bounty land grants during both the Revolutionary War and Civil War. For the purpose of encouraging longer military service, this bounty system would offer land to men fit for service in return for some specified number of years of military service. Although arguably not a major factor in the United State victory in both wars, this bounty system accomplished its purpose as evidenced by the United States enticing enough men into ranks of military service to further its war campaign. Today, a common use of bounties is as an incentive for a class of persons, commonly referred to as whistleblowers, with knowledge of misconduct on the part of private or public organization to report that misconduct which is in violation of the law or against the public interest. The government encourages whistleblowing through the use of bounties and anti-retaliation laws that make up a scheme for whistleblower protection. Whistleblowers face many obstacles...
Words: 5685 - Pages: 23
...FRAUD AND SOCIETY ARTICLE SUMMARY 9 This is an article summary of CRYING FOUL: WHISTLEBLOWER PROVISIONS OF THE DODD-FRANK ACT OF 2010, Umang Desai, Loyola University Chicago Law Journal, 2011, 43 Loy. U. Chi. L.J. 427. This Article examines how the Dodd-Frank Act, would encourage whistleblower participation in the promotion of corporate governance in an attempt to restore integrity in the corporate world and the financial markets after the wave of the several of the major fraudulent scandals. The provisions of the Act, are more likely to increase the financial burden on both corporations and the government, but however it has some consequences that could greatly diminish the positive impact of this legislation. To delineate the goals and effects of any whistleblower provisions, it is important to understand the historical treatment of whistleblowers in the legislation and corporate practice. Accordingly, after examining the basic concepts of corporate governance, as well as prior treatment of whistleblowers in the existing whistleblower’s legislation. The primary goals of corporate governance in a market-based system include full disclosure and the production of accurate financial information. Whistleblowers have the potential to play an important role in this system because they are often the first to know when corporate disclosures are inaccurate. Corporate governance regulations are also intended to align the goals of the corporation's leaders with those of its shareholders ...
Words: 892 - Pages: 4
...from 2001 to 2008, with some reference to later laws such as Dodd-Frank. The context is against the quote from Aristotle that “law is order, and good law is good order”. A Brief history of Deregulation: Regulations have been considered a blessing and a curse since time immemorial. It could be argued, especially with those of a theological mindset, that religions introduced the first forms of regulations. The penalty for deviations were well laid out, and often times had precedent, but exceptions were always sought and loopholes were often explored. Modern economics, regardless of which school of thought is followed, can be compared to a religion1. There are tenets, or commandments. There are different religions, from Keynes, to Marx to Milton. Without extending this analogy, it is relevant to point out that economic theories either rely on governments to participate wholeheartedly in the state of economic affairs by regulating businesses, corporations and industries, or to let the system weed out the weaker in favor of the stronger. In the United States, bitter past experience shaped the regulations surrounding businesses. The Great Depression was the first indicator that the system needed to be made more robust, which in turn led to regulations that formed the base of what our current system looks like today2. The Glass-Steagall Act (GSA) was designed to separate investment and commercial banking activities3. The Act had many detractors, with many claiming it to be an over-reaction...
Words: 3982 - Pages: 16
...University Outline Introduction Securities Acts of 1933 and 1934 • Brief History of the Securities Act of 1933 • Objectives of the Securities Act of 1933 • Summary of the Securities Act of 1933 • Necessity of the Securities Act of 1934 • Summary of the Securities Act of 1934 • Peat Marwick Fraud/Scandal The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 • Brief History of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 • Summary of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 • Kellogg Brown & Root LLC Fraud/Scandal Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) • The Purpose of SOX • Summary of SOX • US Bank of Seattle Fraud/Scandal Conclusion Government Regulation in the Accounting Industry The Great Depression and the Crash of 1929 led the United States into the beginning of new regulations. The first of these regulations was the Securities Act of 1933, which had a goal of prohibiting deceit, misrepresentation, and fraud in the sale of securities. The abusive practices of many banks and Wall Street firms resulted in the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 1934. It was established by The Securities Act of 1934 and gave the SEC power to monitor the sale of securities in the U.S. As a result of SEC investigations in the 1970's, it was discovered that many businesses were making payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business with them. Therefore, Congress enacted the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) to stop the bribery of foreign...
Words: 2860 - Pages: 12
...The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) became law in 2002 after the discovery of significant fraudulent activity on the part of officers of several corporations (Enron, WorldCom, Adelphia, etc.). The goal of the law was to stem the tide of continuing fraudulent behavior, tighten governance and make it more costly for individuals if they were involved in frauds. Unfortunately, the goals were not achieved, and the spate of significant frauds continued with frauds involving major banks and corporations (HealthSouth, Lehman Brothers, AIG, Madoff Securities, etc.). These frauds took place which has led to the additional passage of the Dodd- Frank Act in 2010. The passage of SOX and the Dobbs-Frank Act points to the inability of laws and regulations, by themselves, to prevent fraudulent behavior. Do you think “maintaining a culture that emphasizes ethics and compliance” is enough to prevent fraud? Do we need to focus on the dangers of unbridled greed and on inventing fancy investment instruments that few people understand but many people trade since no one wants to be left behind in the often believed unlimited profit potential of the markets? Title II of SOX consists of nine sections that establish standards for external auditor independence. The goal of Title II of SOX is to restrict auditing companies from providing non-audit services (e.g., consulting services) for the same clients in which they audit. In the article “The Case of Phar-Mor Inc.” the author Williams, S. Lansing...
Words: 317 - Pages: 2
...any kind of danger to the public or the environment. Whistle-blowing can be internal or external. The whistle blowers are often well educated people holding professional positions and are altruistically motivated. They allow themselves to be guided by their own attitudes and hold utilitarian beliefs. However, in case of being found out, the effects can be vastly debilitating for them including losing the job, isolation and personal life being put in jeopardy. The Dodd Frank law provides the whistle blowers protection from retaliation from the companies. If companies retaliate to whistle blowing the employees reporting wrong doing are protected by the Dodd Frank's anti retaliation statute and liable for double back pay (Miceli, et. al. 1984). Introduction Recently, a case of whistle blowing had come to light in September last year when Khaled Asadi filed a complaint that G.E. Energy (USA) violated the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. He alleged that he had been terminated after making an internal report of a possible securities law violation. Asadi had accepted GE energy's offer in 2006 to be its s its Iraq Country Executive and relocated to Amman, Jordan. While serving in this position, Asadi came to know that GE Energy had hired a woman closely associated with a senior Iraqi official to win his favor for negotiating a lucrative joint venture...
Words: 1083 - Pages: 5
...Disparate Impact of SOX on Large and Small Firms Andrew Rubin St. John’s University I. Introduction During the early 2000’s there was a series of scandals involving many large, multinational firms. Among these firms were Enron, Tyco and WorldCom, all of whom had been costing investors and stakeholders millions, if not billions, of dollars through fraud. Following the scandal, the downturn in investor confidence was enormous. Looking back, there appeared to be a culture of fraud and deceit inside corporate America that had been hurting the average investor. After uncovering these scandals Congress wanted to take immediate action. It passed the Sarbanes – Oxley Act (SOX) shortly after in an attempt restore faith in the country’s capital markets. Between 2000 and 2002 there appeared to be a new, large fraud every few months being covered in the news. Investors were drawing their money out of the markets and some of the largest corporations in America were going bankrupt. Congress quickly looked for answers as to how this could happen and discovered a myriad of factors. Many factors combined to create a culture where small changes to the financials were overlooked and over time those small changes accumulated into larger changes, and bigger issues. Eventually the once small changes became too large to ignore any longer and resulted in collapse. One major factor uncovered by Congress was the effect of auditor conflicts of interest might be having...
Words: 6658 - Pages: 27
...TERM PAPER: Fraud Prevention: Are Existing Deterrents Working Kevin B. Hoover ACC 630 – Professor Sheila Vagle University of Maryland University College Introduction I recently read the following quote posted by an anonymous person on Facebook: “I had ADHD when I was a kid too, but when I saw my father taking off his belt, I was healed”. I share that not just because it is true in my case, but because it is a fairly humorous and spot on example of a deterrent. Deterrence is a critical element of the effort to prevent a particular behavior. People have to have a reason not to act that way. When I was a kid, I didn’t know what a deterrent was, but I sure knew that the possibility of a whipping was reason enough not to lose my mind. What deters people working in the business and financial worlds from committing fraud? The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 perhaps? Fear of prosecution? One would hope so, but it is certain that the answer is more complex than that. In fact, it could be argued that the answer is nothing deters people from committing fraud because fraud is still happening. Therein, lies the aim of this paper. This paper will take a look at financial fraud and the deterrents in place since 2002, and offer the opinion that the deterrents are not working. A history of the issues as they relate to this opinion will be given. Further, recommended solutions to the perceived problems will be put forth. It is worthy of mention that deterrence and prevention...
Words: 4553 - Pages: 19
...accounting policies due to past events and changes from various economic and financial crises. The complexities and debates that arise from the causes of a financial crisis result in revisions to accounting regulations and standards that seem to be quickly implemented in order to prevent future disasters. THE SECURITIES ACTS OF 1933 AND 1934 The Securities Act was Congress' opening shot in the war on securities fraud with Congress primarily targeting the issuers of securities. Companies which issue securities (issuers) seek to raise money to fund new projects or investments or to expand; thus, companies have an incentive to present the company and its plans in the rosiest light possible. The Securities Act serves the dual purpose of ensuring that issuers selling securities to the public disclose material information to investors, and that any securities transactions are not based on fraudulent information or practices. In this context, "material" means information that would affect a reasonable investor's evaluation of the company's stock. The goal is to provide investors with accurate information so that they can make informed investment decisions. The Securities Act effectuates disclosure through a mandatory...
Words: 1538 - Pages: 7
...The Rise and Fall of Arthur Andersen LLP In October 2001, Enron was accused of overstating their earnings in the last few years in excess of $1 billion dollars (Doost, 2001). At the same time, Arthur Andersen, one of the most reputable auditing firms, was responsible for auditing Enron’s financial statements. The Security Exchange Commission (SEC) ordered Arthur Andersen to provide all relevant Enron documentation and auditing files. Going against Arthur Andersen’s impeccable reputation of honesty, David B. Duncan, the Arthur Andersen partner in charge of the Enron account, had his staff destroy thousands of pages of documents and records related to this case of fraud (Oppel & Eichenwald, 2002). Ultimately, the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Arthur Andersen’s conviction of "knowingly...corruptly persuading another person to withhold or alter documents in an official proceeding" (Wojdacz, 2009). However, Arthur Andersen had imploded and was not able to recover. Founder and His Principles Arthur Andersen was founded December 11, 1913. Arthur Andersen had a reputation of exemplary honesty. Arthur Andersen himself came from an immigrant Norwegian family. He worked for Price Waterhouse. At 23, Andersen became the youngest certified public accountant (CPA) in the state of Illinois by educating himself at night (Marotta & Selman, 2009). At this time, CPAs were trying to establish accounting as a profession. Marotta and Selman (2009) stated Integral...
Words: 3364 - Pages: 14
...clear path on how to reverse the demand that was cause by repealing the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. Although there has been other regulations and acts pass since the repeal of the Act of 1933, the ability to restore and strength our dollar has been an uphill battle to take control of it. What was known within our economic system to readjust and rebuilt had not worked to establish balance playing field on the world stage or our domestic economy. As we look forward toward corrective action though the Dodd-Frank Act, Sarbanes-Oxley Act or the Global Legal Settlement of 2002 which reduced the conflict of interest as did the Sarbanes-Oakley Act. These conflicts encompass “underwriting and research in investment banks, auditing and consulting in accounting firms and credit assessment and consulting in credit rating agencies.” (Sanati, 2009) So while we have had a slow and diosmose recovery from this crisis, I will try to answer some of the questions presented to us today on our ability to fully recover and instill some preventative measures to ensure a worst and more devastating financial crisis from taking hold of our economic system. Keywords: Glass-Steagall Act, Bailout, Dodd-Frank Act The Federal Reserve System & Financial Crisis The key factor that protected the banking customers in the United States was repealed in 1988 by than President Bill Clinton; the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 had placed a firewall between the Commercial banks and the Investment banks. The...
Words: 5914 - Pages: 24
...Lawrence Mitchell who are favor of more regulation and what their views are to the legislation and regulations, while in Part II I concludes the arguments of Roberta Romano and Stephen Bainbridge who think more regulations are of improper and “quackery”. Part III is about a more detailed examination for different regulations and arguments as I concluded in part I and part II. If certain regulations are well executed, it should not only benefit the corporations and their shareholders but also the entire stock market. I: There should be more regulations Empirical evidence The purpose of corporate governance is to make significance for the health of American business; so there came the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX). According to Robert Prentice, he points out that SOX made the market a rapid recovery as it emphasizes on the transparency of corporations....
Words: 2409 - Pages: 10
