Disturbed by persistent reports that auditors are stonewalling auditing committees about regulatory inspection findings, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is offering audit committees some advice on how to get more information out of their auditors.
The PCAOB published a 26-page primer on its inspection process targeted at audit committees to help them understand what they can learn about their own audit firm as a result of the board’s inspection process. The release explains how the inspection process works, what inspection reports mean, and how audit committees can get more information out of their auditors about inspection findings and their implications. The release is meant to help audit committees learn more about the nonpublic aspects of inspections, where the PCAOB is prohibited by law from discussing inspection findings either in their reports or with issuers directly.
