Overview

CAS 720, The Auditor's Responsibilities Relating to Other Information in Documents Containing Audited Financial Statements, deals with the auditor's responsibilities relating to other information, whether financial or non-financial information (other than financial statements and the auditor's report thereon), included in an entity's annual report. An entity's annual report may be a single document or a combination of documents that serve the same purpose.

CAS 720 is written in the context of an audit of financial statements by an independent auditor. Accordingly, the objectives of the auditor in this CAS are to be understood in the context of the overall objectives of the auditor as stated in paragraph 11 of CAS 200, Overall Objectives of the Independent Auditor and the Conduct of an Audit in Accordance with Canadian Auditing Standards. The requirements in the CASs are designed to enable the auditor to achieve the objectives specified in the CASs, and thereby the overall objectives of the auditor. The auditor's opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information, nor does this CAS require the auditor to obtain audit evidence beyond that required to form an opinion on the financial statements.

CAS 720 requires the auditor to read and consider the other information because other information that is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or the auditor's knowledge obtained in the audit may indicate that there is a material misstatement of the financial statements or that a material misstatement of the other information exists, either of which may undermine the credibility of the financial statements and the auditor's report thereon. Such material misstatements may also inappropriately influence the economic decisions of the users for whom the auditor's report is prepared.