System for Electronic Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR)

Posted by & filed under Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Uncategorized.

Students and investors wishing to know more about our Canadian Public companies, should know about the SEDAR web site. Financial information is provided , such as: 1. Annual Financial statements  issued quarterly and year end 2.MD&A ( Management Discussion and Analysis reports) 3. Press Releases,  provide the most recent and up-to-date corporate disclosures   www.sedar.com is… Read more »

Scrushy Back in the News

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Video Updates.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered a new review of the convictions in the government corruption case against former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman and ex-HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy. Questions: 1. What is the “honest services” fraud law? 2. What is a “quid pro quo” agreement? 3. A judge issued a $2.9 billion civil judgment… Read more »

Supreme Court Rules on Constitutionality of the PCAOB

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 28, 2010, that the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) violates the U.S. Constitution’s separation of powers principle because board members are not appointed by the president.  In a 5-4 decision, the Court stated that the president must have more power to remove PCAOB members. The five-member board… Read more »

Bond Rating Under Fire

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Video Updates.

E-mails and other documents were presented as evidence at a hearing examining the causes of the financial crisis on Capitol Hill on April 23, 2010.  This hearing is part of an 18-month investigation by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, led by Senator Carl Levin. Subcommittee assertions are that the rating agencies were well aware… Read more »

Sarbanes-Oxley Benefits without Cost

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Auditing, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, Intermediate Accounting.

Many have debated the cost of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) versus its benefits, given the recent accounting scandals that continue to “pile on”. However, according to Harvard Business School professor, Francois Brochet, the little discussed 2002 provision known as Section 403 is actually making a difference for investors and small companies (and with little cost, unlike some… Read more »

“Deadbeat” and proud of it?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Auditing, Fraud Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Video Updates.

When you hear the word “deadbeat,” you automatically think bad things.  According to former MBNA employee, Jerry Young, a credit card deadbeat is the insider term used by credit card company executives, that refers to credit card users who pay off their bills promptly and in full each month. Doesn’t sound too bad, right? By doing… Read more »

Evidence that Internal Control Reviews Reduce Restatements

Posted by & filed under All Articles, Auditing.

According to a new study from the research firm, Audit Analytics, smaller companies that have not had auditors review their internal-control reports are more likely to have restatements than larger companies, despite their claims of effective controls. This is bad news for those small publicly traded companies who have argued that they should be exempt… Read more »

Times are Tough for Everyone – Including the PCAOB!

Posted by & filed under All Articles, Auditing.

Just a week before the Supreme Court hears oral arguments about constitutionality of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and why it should be dissolved, the members of the Board asked for a 16% in the overseer’s 2010 budget. This amounts to an additional $25.7 million to hire 60 more employees, for international inspections,… Read more »