audit
An interesting tool called Benford’s Law can be effective in detecting fraud. But it also can be used during external auditing procedures to test journal entries for unusual numeric patterns.…
When a married couple files a joint tax return, each spouse is “jointly and severally” liable for the full amount of tax on the couple’s combined income. Therefore, the IRS…
The pandemic has presented numerous challenges for businesses, but it also taught us how to be resilient, cost-conscious and adaptable. Over the last few years, we’ve learned that remote working…
Maintaining the status quo in today’s volatile marketplace can be risky. To succeed, businesses need to “level up” by being proactive and adaptable. But some managers may be unsure where…
Footnotes appear at the end of a company’s audited financial statements. These disclosures provide insight into account balances, accounting practices and potential risk factors — knowledge that’s vital to making…
An external audit is less stressful and less intrusive if you anticipate your auditor’s document requests. Auditors typically ask clients to provide similar documents year after year. They’ll accept copies…
Auditors of public companies started reporting critical audit matters (CAMs) in their audit opinions in 2019. This represents a major change to the pass-fail auditors’ reports that had been in…
If you have a parent entering a nursing home, you may not be thinking about taxes. But there are a number of possible tax implications. Here are five. 1. Long-term…
Auditors typically deliver financial statements to calendar-year businesses in the spring. A useful tool that accompanies the annual report is the management letter. It may provide suggestions — based on…
President Biden is seeking to bolster the IRS and enforcement of the tax laws over the next decade. In the last 10 years, the Internal Revenue Service’s funding has been…
The IRS just released its audit statistics for the 2020 fiscal year and fewer taxpayers had their returns examined as compared with prior years. But even though a small percentage…
In today’s unprecedented market conditions, it can be challenging to predict metrics that underlie your company’s accounting estimates. Examples of key “unknowns” include how much longer certain pandemic issues will…
In recent years, the accounting rules for certain balance sheet items have transitioned from historical cost to “fair value.” Examples of assets that may currently be reported at fair value…
An Audit committee faces many challenges in 2021. As the economy rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, there are new dimensions to the oversight roles and responsibilities of the audit committee.…
The use of audit analytical procedures can help during the planning and review stages of the audit. But analytics can have an even bigger impact when these procedures are used…