How important is it that your textbook incorporates elements from Sarbanes-Oxley?

The implications of Sarbanes-Oxley are a new edition to this text.  Although the Lakeside Company is a privately held business, the company’s arrangement is considering the issuance of stock to the public. Thus, students are asked to address the implications of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on both the client and the auditor.

Are students familiar with ethical issues and cases regarding fraud?  How have you incorporated these topics in the past?

Questions regarding ethics and fraud have been incorporated into this text in the previous editions. Several additional questions have been added regarding both ethics and fraud.  The authors identify questions about ethics with a logo of a scale and questions about fraud with a logo of a triangle.

How much coverage on the Risk Assessment Standards do you typically provide over the course of the semester?

In March of 2006 the AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board issued SAS 104.111, eight standards relating to the assessment of risks in a financial statement audit. Questions and references have been incorporated that teach students some of the standards.  Ultimately, the Risk Assessment Standards establish:

·        Guidance in financial statement audits for private companies concerning the auditor’s assessment of the risks of material misstatements

·        Design and performance of audit procedures that are responsive to risks

·        Standards and provide guidance on planning and supervision, the nature of audit evidence, and evaluating whether the audit evidence affords a reasonable basis for the auditor’s opinion on the financial statements under audit.