Business Commons^™

The Importance Of Clarification Of Auditors' Responsibilities Under The New Audit Reporting Standards*, Ann G. Backof, Kendall Bowlin, Brian M. Goodson

Faculty and Student Publications

Given the uncertainty regarding auditors' responsibilities, standard setters considered the need for clarification of technical terms such as reasonable assurance in the new audit reporting models. The PCAOB ultimately decided to exclude clarifying language from its final standard, while the Auditing Standards Board and IAASB made such language mandatory. Given the difference in reporting models, this study investigates the role clarification of reasonable assurance plays in auditor negligence. We predict and find that, absent clarification, jurors judge auditors to be more negligent when the audit report includes a related critical audit matters disclosure than when it does not. However, consistent …