Social Benefits of Audit

The audit profession is a relative new comer to the accounting world. The Industrial Revolution, with the growing business sector, was the spark that resulted in auditing techniques being sought out and utilized. Initially, audit techniques and methods were adopted by companies to control costs and detect fraud, which is more closely aligned with internal auditing. However, the need for mandatory oversight of public companies was recognized after the great stock market crash of 1929 (Byrnes, et al., 2012). This brought about the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 creating the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). At that point, the SEC was tasked with

Implementation of international human rights law can happen on either a local, a territorial or a global level. States that endorse human rights arrangements confer themselves to regarding those rights and guaranteeing

There needs to be a flexible set of requirements regarding just social welfare and other issues that are linked to the poverty and inequality that most, if not all societies face. We are currently in what seems a globalized economy, where a simple economic action from one place in the world can affect all other countries in one way or another. It is important that we concentrate and deliberate on what is needed for social justice, human rights and equity to work properly in regards to every society’s main concern. Although these three concepts are hard to exercise in a way that no more issues can emerge from them it is possible to adjust them to alleviate the conditions and diminish the damages caused by the lack of

The purpose of accounting is to record the financial information, such as transactions and performance, related to a business. The accounting profession has been in existence for as long as business transactions have occurred. It wasn’t until 1494, however, when Luca Pacioli, a Venetian merchant, wrote Summa de Arithmetica, Geometrio, Proportioni et Proportionalita. His writings described a two-entry system of debits and credits, which became the basis for modern accounting systems. Three centuries later, with the emergence of the Industrial Revolution and the development of corporations, the profession of being an accountant became a necessity to keep track of the rising costs and cash flows. As a result, the American Association of Public

Legitimacy in accounting practices is ensured by the check and balance of having independent auditors from registered public accountant firms reviewing financial practices. The report features eleven sections and these sections pertain to accounting overview, independence of auditors to reduce interest conflicts, corporate responsibility, financial disclosures, tax returns, criminal fraud and various elements of white collar criminal activity (107th Congress

Any obligation a state’s subjects feel stems from the government’s justifiability and moral defensibility. These two factors must be strong enough to compel the subjects into following government order instead of following alternative pursuits to accomplish individual goals. Legitimate government actually has this ability, while illegitimate authority merely purports it. However, even legitimate governments have parameters that limit what the state may ask of its subjects. These parameters are derived from the subjects, based on what they feel is appropriate for the government to do and what they will allow the government to do without

Hogan, Rezaee, Riley, and Velury (2008) noted the development of the auditing standards created due to the financial scandals that have occurred over the years. However, the authors note even with the development of SOX and SAS No. 99 there still does not appear to be a decline in financial statement fraud (232).

Due to increasing economic and financial growth, many types of audit have been incorporated throughout the development process of internal activities. Audits can be performed manually or they can incorporate technology. According to Hunton and

The first requirement for a legitimate state is that they provide protection for the people’s rights. Whether it be conventional rights or moral rights, the state should give more protection than without a state at all.

I was first introduced to the world of business through a book called Pipe Dreams: Greed, Ego, and the Death of Enron. At the time, though I had difficulty understanding all the complicated underlying causes for the energy giant’s collapse, I was struck by the fact that Arthur Andersen, Enron’s auditor, failed to fulfill their obligations to conduct proper audits, and ultimately lost their CPA licenses. This made me interested in the role of auditors and the reasons behind their significant—though not always positive—influence. It also motivated me to learn accountancy at the University of Hong Kong upon graduating from high school.

The audit risk model has provided a conceptual framework for auditing practice for more than 40 years. Despite practical difficulties in implementation and criticisms of its theoretical foundation, the model has been fairly effective in helping auditors analyze risks and use that analysis to determine the nature, timing, and extent of audit procedures (especially substantive procedures) in audits of financial statements. The audit risk model provides a conceptual framework for the risk assessment standards.

It is ironic that one seems to forget the function of a ‘state’. A ‘state’ will not be a ‘state’ without its citizens in it. Together, the citizens in a state collects and raises fund (in the form of paying taxes) so that the funds can go back to the citizens in the form of welfare services such as infrastructure, transportation, health care and education that benefits the whole society. Welfare state should also act like a social insurance that protects its citizens from losses, which came from unforeseen circumstances. For that reason, a state has the right to implement rules and regulations to minimize the risk of these losses. Examples of these rules include using seat belts and child restraints, raising tobacco prices, limiting access to pornography sites, and other regulations that would be more effective if the citizens undergo a change in lifestyle and behavior. Therefore, cooperation between all members of a state is needed to ensure that the welfare system works

Ethical and legal obligations apply to all members of society. As one in society, the obligation to act in an ethical, law abiding manner on a daily basis is vital to the integrity of daily life. Many professions have their own code of ethics. Financial reporting is not exempt from such ethical and legal standards. One’s lively hood depends on decisions made in the business world. Business transactions are done daily and can impact one’s economic stability. Trust is placed in the hands of corporate America and an obligation of financial reporting to reveal a complete honest and legal picture of an entity’s accounting practices is important in attaining trust. This paper will discuss the obligations of

When determining and defending the use of a particular ethical system within the confines of a profession, it is important to evaluate the system in terms of the professional culture as well as the expected professional conduct laid out within the vocation itself. The accounting profession has been evolving for thousands of years. Early accounting records date business transactions back as far as third century B.C. (Schroeder, Clark, & Cathey, 2009). Early record keeping was for internal purposes and as societies and economies expanded, it became important to maintain records for external purposes as well. According to Schroeder, Clark & Cathey (2009), by the ninetheeth centruy, bookkeeing expanded into accounting (p. 3). From this time, it has been the duty of the accountant to serve the public interest and the profession has been culitvated into an organizational culture with professional norms and standards constantly taking shape in an effort to complete an all-inclusive conceptual framework.

The United Nations is widely regarded and respected as the most powerful institution that promotes international cooperation and human rights action. In theory, actions implemented by and within the United Nations are based on the mutual global goal of protecting international human rights and preventing human sufferings. These actions are constituted through three main mechanisms: the Treaty-based system, the Human Rights Council, and Security Council and Humanitarian Interventions, with the level of confrontation and seriousness in each mechanism increases respectively. While aimed to serve the mutual goal of protecting human rights over the world and have shown some successes, in a world of sovereignty, actions when implemented are in fact grounded by the national interests of each state, including embracing its national sovereignty, concreting its strategic relationships with other states, and enhancing its reputation in the international community. This paper will analyze the successes and failures of each of the three mechanisms of the United Nations regime, through which it aims to prove that when it comes to actions, states focus more on their national, and in some cases, regional interests than on the mutual goal of strengthening human rights throughout the world, thus diminishing the legitimacy of the whole United Nations system.