Since the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed in July 2002 hundreds—if not thousands—of articles, white papers and books have been written about the legislation. Most analysts in the field agree that Sections 302 and 404 of SOX are the most complex and costly of what is widely regarded as the most onerous piece of the corporate governance legislation.
Section 302 requires management—specifically, the CEO and CFO—to sign off on financial statement fairness and internal control effectiveness, and has been in full force since August of 2003.
