PCAOB proposes ethics and independence rule
25 Jul 2007
The United States Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has proposed for comment a new ethics and independence rule titled Communication with Audit Committees Concerning Independence.
The proposed rule would require a registered public accounting firm to communicate to an issuer's audit committee about any relationships between the firm and the issuer that may reasonably be thought to bear on the firm's independence. The communications would be required both before the firm accepts a new engagement pursuant to the standards of the PCAOB and annually for continuing engagements. In addition, the PCAOB proposed to amend its rule on Tax Services for Persons in Financial Reporting Oversight Roles that would exclude from the scope of the rule the portion of the audit period that precedes the beginning of the professional engagement period. Click for (PDF 308k).