Description: It’s not the type of news any company wants. This past week Swedish authorities arrested one Bombardier employee and briefly detained two others over allegations of bribery. The suspicions are that somehow Bombardier employees colluded with Azerbaijani officials in an effort to secure contracts in Azerbaijan. Date: March 10, 2017 Source: montrealgazette.com Link: http://montrealgazette.com/business/bombardier-officials-arrested-in-sweden-report… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Auditing
May I have the right envelope please?
Description: Accounting giant Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) took a big reputational hit at this past weekend’s Academy Awards. Millions saw it unfold on camera as somehow the PWC representatives delivered the wrong envelope for the best picture award. PWC has had a 83 year history of oversight of the awards process. It will be interesting… Read more »
Wondering about Deloitte and the Supreme Court
Description: On February 13, 2017, this blog featured a piece called “Every 20 Years or So.” It dealt with auditing firm Deloitte’s appeal of court decision that it pay roughly $85 million in damages related to their involvement in audit of the failed Livent enterprise. Well, if you read that blog post, you may know… Read more »
Every 20 years or so
Description: A lawyer friend of mine – who also happens to be a chartered accountant – has told me that roughly every 20 years or so, it seems that the Supreme Court of Canada deals with a case on auditor liability. Well, the 20 years must be up as on February 15, 2017, the Supreme… Read more »
Late warning
Description: Perhaps it should not surprise us when government departments fail to implement a recommendation from the auditor general. But this one seems to defy imagination. In 2011, the federal auditor general informed the government that a consultant hired to manage First Nation finances had been part of an alleged fraud the previous year. Yet… Read more »
A most unusual theft
Description: Internal control is important in preventing and detecting fraud and theft. The Royal Canadian Mint found out recently that metal detectors were not sufficient to prevent or detect an employee from stealing over $150,000 in gold by hiding it in a body cavity. Lawyer Gary Barnes noted that controls over the precious metals were… Read more »
Ice storm disaster
Description: This past Tuesday night a major ice storm knocked over 100,000 NB Power customers off the grid, and by weekend thousands of New Brunswickers were still without electricity. With colder winter weather settling in, after a few days near the zero mark, citizens are facing both darkness and cold. A number of communities have… Read more »
Cybertheft
Description: This past Thursday one of the world’s biggest steel manufacturers, ThyssenKrupp, revealed that earlier this year it had been hit by cyberattacks. The hackers, from somewhere in Southeast Asia, stole valuable trade secrets from ThyssenKrupp. The company delayed informing the media about the attack until new security features were put in place. Date: December… Read more »
Enron anniversary
Description: December 1, 2001: It has been 15 years since that infamous date in financial history when Enron filed for creditor protection under US bankruptcy provisions. Enron’s failure had huge impacts on the accounting profession with the collapse of one of the largest auditing firms, Arthur Andersen. And the Enron collapsed generated additional accountability provisions… Read more »
Implementation failures
Description: In his latest report the Auditor General of Canada expressed frustration with what the Government of Canada has done – or not done – with his previous recommendations. Half way through his ten year term, Michael Ferguson said that when his auditors go back to audit a program for a second time, they often… Read more »
Burnley Understanding Financial Accounting, 3rd Canadian Edition
Kimmel Financial Accounting, 8th Canadian Edition
Weygandt Accounting Principles, 9th Canadian Edition
Kimmel Survey of Accounting, 2nd Edition
Kieso Intermediate Accounting, 13th Canadian Edition
Weygandt Managerial Accounting, 6th Canadian Edition
Farmer Cost Accounting, 1st Edition
Savage Accounting Information Systems, 1st Edition