Easy way to research mobility requirements
The AICPA and NASBA have set up a website that allows CPAs to quickly look up the practice privilege requirements in another state. The site, CPAmobility asks three questions:
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Compilations & reviews
Post-implementation issues from SSARS 19 – some good reminders – 2
Highlights of some implementation issues of SSARS 19 discussed by Michael Glynn, CPA, in the August 2011 issue of California CPA magazine. Article is called Life After SSARS No. 19.
Previous post discussed the need to remember the transition date and that new work performed on years ending prior to 12-15-10 needs to be performed and reported under the pre-SSARS 19 rules. Also a reminder about the option to disclose reasons for lack of independence.
Final idea from Mr. Glynn that I wanted to mention:
Focus on goal of a review and the level of work needed
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Post-implementation issues from SSARS 19 – some good reminders – 2Read More »
Post-implementation issues from SSARS 19 – some good reminders – 1
Highlights of some implementation issues of SSARS 19 discussed by Michael Glynn, CPA, in the August 2011 issue of California CPA magazine. Article is called Life After SSARS No. 19.
A few ideas Mr. Glynn mentions:
Transition date
If you are doing a review or comp on financial statements for periods before 12-15-10, you need to use the pre-SSARS 19 rules. Mr. Glynn says:
Some CPAs have mistakenly concluded that after Dec. 15, 2010, SSARS No. 19 was the rule of the land, and that they could disregard the pre-SSARS No. 19 literature. Not so fast. …
Post-implementation issues from SSARS 19 – some good reminders – 1Read More »
Quick overview of SSARS 19
CalCPA’s July magazine has a good, short overview of SSARS 19 by Marcia Hein. Article is SSARS 19: Game Changer.
She has some good ideas on the transition to first-time application of the new report. Well worth your time. She is a technical reviewer for the peer review program and a past chair of the California Peer Review program.
All of the ethics rules are being reorganized and restructured – here’s an intro to the project
All of the ethics rules are being restructured and redrafted. They will be put together around a conceptual framework. Although the changes are in the distant future, efforts to rewrite the code are underway right now. It would be wise for us to start paying attention.
A good place to start is an article in the June 2011 Journal of Accountancy.
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Compilations are still risky
Don’t get lulled into the mindset of ‘don’t worry, it’s only a compilation’. Plenty can still go wrong. Compilations are not zero-risk.
John Hufnagle has a post discussing the concept of risk in a comp – Compilations – Still Scary After All These Years.
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Compilation and Review: Practice Issues (Third Edition) CPE course now available online
(duplicate post from Nonprofit Update).
I have written a 3-hour online CPE course called Compilation and Review: Practice Issues (Third Edition). It is now available at the CCH Learning Center website.
Here’s what the course covers, from the CCH site:
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Compilation and Review: Practice Issues (Third Edition) CPE course now available onlineRead More »
Should you get legal advice if you have a possible fraud or illegal act in a compilation or review?
SSARS 19 suggests that if an incident of possible fraud or illegal acts rises above the level of clearly inconsequential, then the accountant should consider getting legal advice.
Duh!
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What about inconsequential fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19?
SSARS 19 says that an accountant does not need to report inconsequential instances of illegal acts to management – – doesn’t apply to fraud, just illegal acts.
At first glance that appears rather odd. As long as you are breaking the law in little ways it’s okay? When you think about it, the answer to the question is: yes, don’t worry about it.
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What about inconsequential fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19?Read More »
How to handle fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19 – part two
Previous post discussed how to handle indications that fraud or illegal acts may have taken place during a compilation or review.
Can you report that information outside the client organization?
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How to handle fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19 – part twoRead More »
How to handle fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19 – part one
What should you do if something comes to your attention during a compilation or review that suggests that fraud or an illegal act may have taken place?
SSARS 19 starts this discussion with two intriguing phrases. First is the comment saying if information comes to your attention. Second is the comment that this information indicates a fraud or illegal act “may have occurred”.
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How to handle fraud or illegal acts under SSARS 19 – part oneRead More »
Going concern issues in SSARS 19 – part two
Previous post introduced the issue of what to do when something comes to an accountant’s attention during a review or compilation that there is some uncertainty whether the client will be around for a year after the balance sheet date.
What to do if you find yourself in that situation? Here is a casual translation of the SSARS description:
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Going concern issues in SSARS 19 – part one
What should you do if it seems like there is a going concern issue on a review or compilation?
SSARS 19 discusses how to handle the situation when something comes to the accountant’s attention that there is some uncertainty about the organization’s ability to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time.
Wow, how’s that for a sentence that begs for some definition?
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Materiality in SSARS 19
SSARS 19 says misstatements are material when they could influence the economic decisions of users who are reading the financial statements. If errors or misstatements in financial statements accumulate to the point where it could change decision-making, then you are in the range of material. If there is something missing that should be present and it would change someone’s actions, that something is material.
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Posts on documentation requirements from SSARS #19 combined into a page
The series of posts written on documentation of reviews and comps under SSARS 19 have been combined into a single page. This means you can read all the posts in chronological order, which means they are in logical order. Click on the “SSARS 19 documentation requirements” tab above or click here.