Late last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed an enforcement action against several vendors of a Royal Ahold subsidiary. According to the complaint, the implicated individuals “aided and abetted” a massive fraud by signing materially false audit confirmations that had been sent to them by the subsidiary’s auditor. Experts say the case underscores the potential liability for companies and individuals asked to provide such confirmations. And that liability risk has increased in recent years, as auditors have sought confirmation of an increasing range of transactions from entities that do business with their clients.
