Topic: Ethical Issues in Auditing

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q5 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Identify and discuss fraud and error in the audit of Badagry Yachting and Marina.

Badagry Yachting and Marina (BYM) have a marina on the West Coast of Nigeria and a large sales operation dealing in yachts and speedboats. You are responsible for the audit of BYM and have found some potential causes of concern that could indicate fraudulent activity or financial misconduct within the company. In particular:

(i) 30% of the yachts on sale by BYM are supplied through one of the major international boating companies with a special finance arrangement deal. However, BYM have also obtained separate finance on these yachts, which are therefore in effect being ‘double financed’.
(ii) Ten yachts shown as assets by BYM cannot be located, with no explanation other than that they have not been sold. These yachts are worth approximately N50 million.
(iii) Long delays have occurred in performing reconciliations, with the last four months of reconciliations still not completed. At the time of the last reconciliation, material differences had been identified upon which no action appears to have been undertaken.
(iv) Sales have been overstated by N100 million in the current financial statements.
The finance director has been off sick with stress for the last five months and therefore has not been available to discuss any of the issues identified.

Required:

a. Explain the difference between fraud and error and how the issues shown here could be categorised as fraud or error. (6 Marks)
b. Discuss the role of management and the role of the auditor in the prevention and detection of fraud and error. (3 Marks)
c. Describe what steps you would take to further investigate and then report on the matters referred to above. (6 Marks)

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q2b – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss the implications of a tax authority investigation into a client after an unmodified audit opinion.

(b) You are a senior manager in Nnamdi & Co, a firm of Chartered Accountants in Nigeria. Recently, you have been assigned specific responsibility for undertaking annual reviews of existing clients. The following situations have arisen in connection with three clients:

i. Nnamdi & Co was appointed auditor and tax advisor to Unicorn Co last year and has recently issued an unmodified opinion on the financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2016. To your surprise, the tax authority has just launched an investigation into the affairs of Unicorn on suspicion of under-declaring income.
(7 Marks)

ii. The chief executive of Hassan Co., an exporter of specialist equipment, has asked for advice on the accounting treatment and disclosure of payments being made for security consultancy services. The payments, which aim to ensure that consignments are not impounded in the destination country of a major customer, may be material to the financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2015. Hassan does not treat these payments as tax-deductible.
(4 Marks)

iii. Your firm has provided financial advice to the Adetunji family for many years and this has sometimes involved your firm in carrying out transactions on their behalf. The eldest son, Verni, is to take up a position as a senior government official to a foreign country next month.
(4 Marks)

Required:
Identify and comment on the ethical and other professional issues raised by each of these matters and state what action, if any, Nnamdi & Co should now take.

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q2a – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss the importance of ethical guidance for accountants in addressing money laundering concerns.

(a) Comment on the need for ethical guidance for accountants on money laundering.
(5 Marks)

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AAA – May 2021 – L3 – Q1a – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discussion of ethical issues and professional challenges in the audit of Blackmart Plc, and recommendations for addressing them.

Blackmart Plc is one of your listed audit clients which offers property management, property financing, and mortgage services to its clients. During the audit of the company, the following matters came to your attention:

(i) Grace Sadiku, one of the audit team members, has provisionally agreed to take out a mortgage facility with a duration of 10 years using the facility of Blackmart Plc to finance her first residential property. In the area where the property is located, the first residential property gets a full tax waiver on the entire installments paid within the first 5 years, which is usually a significant tax incentive. The mortgage facility would be secured by the property and it has been defined as the best offer available in the market.

(ii) Also, during the period, the Human Resources (HR) Manager of Blackmart Plc resigned, and the company had reached out to your firm to provide a staff on secondment till a substantive HR Manager is appointed.

(iii) The management of Blackmart has also informed your audit team that the company maintains only two bank accounts and there will be no need to circularise the banks as the auditors can rely on the balances as generated from the bank’s portal as at the end of the year.

(iv) The audit committee has asked your firm to work with the internal audit team to design internal controls over the part of the accounting system which deals with revenue, and also evaluate the operating effectiveness of the internal controls.

Required:
Prepare a memo to your Manager, commenting on the professional and ethical issues arising from the audit of Blackmart Plc and also suggest to him/her on how to manage the identified issues. (15 Marks)

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – SB – Q1 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Evaluate whether to comply with a former executive’s request for audit services while addressing confidentiality in auditor-client relationships.

Your firm acts as the auditors and advisers to Naija Seven Limited, and to its four directors. The company is owned 50% by Praise Caro, 25% by his wife Madame, and 10% by James Patrick. Braima is the Chief Executive, and Julius is the Finance Director. Julius’ sister, Mabel Mama, recently resigned from the executive board following a disagreement with Praise. Mabel Mama formed her own company, Nigeri Heaven, in competition with Naija Seven.

Currently, Mabel is negotiating with her former co-executives on the profit-related remuneration due to her and the sale of her 15% holding of shares in Naija Seven to one or all of them.

Mabel Mama has contacted you to find out Praise Caro’s current remuneration package since he refused to disclose it to her. She has also requested that your firm should continue to act as her personal adviser, financial adviser, and auditor to Nigeri Heaven.

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q20 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Define the situation where an auditor's role as a rival to the client impairs objectivity.

A situation which puts the auditor as opponent or rival of the client and which may impair his objectivity is termed…………………….

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q19 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Identify the term for codified moral rules and regulations guiding professional behavior.

The codified rules and regulations which are mainly based on moral duties and obligations on how professionals should carry out their duties and how to behave in the society are known as……………….

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q12 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Describe the tendency of an auditor not to believe management assertions without supporting evidence.

The tendency of an auditor not to believe management assertions unless they provide evidence to support the assertions is described as professional……………………..

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AAA – May 2022 – L3 – Q4 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss correspondence with previous auditors, reasons for change in appointments, and client identification under AML regulations.

The idea to incorporate Peters & Shamsudeen Haulages Limited was mooted in London and it was incorporated on the return of Alhaji Shamsudeen to Nigeria. He met Peters during his stay in the UK. They had a good relationship which started in a coffee shop. As they met regularly in this shop, what to do on Alhaji Shamsudeen’s return to Nigeria became the subject of discussion. Based on their experiences, the idea of Peters & Shamsudeen Haulages Limited was birthed. Alhaji Shamsudeen subsequently returned to Nigeria, incorporated the company, obtained the appropriate expatriate quota, and Mr. Peters came in and started running the company.

On commencement, Sejumade Uzoma & Co was appointed the company’s external auditors. Whilst Mr. Peters was around, there was a good working relationship between the company and the audit firm.

After about nine years, Mr. Peters returned to the UK, leaving the company in the hands of Alhaji Shamsudeen. Subsequently, Sejumade Uzoma & Co started receiving complaints from Alhaji Shamsudeen and his key accounting staff. These complaints were rife even before the ninth month of the current year that Sejumade Uzoma & Co. decided not to continue with the engagement. The audit fee for the previous year had about thirty percent outstanding at this stage.

This was the position when Alhaji Shamsudeen approached your partner at Musa, Edewo & Co. (Chartered Accountants). Their discussion was fruitful for your firm, hence it was agreed by the partners that full professional procedures would be applied as normal. Part of the information available on interaction is that the year is almost ending, and there was uncertainty about the firm that will do the audit before the engagement of your firm. You have the responsibility of assisting your partner in ensuring that proper documentations would be done without any compromise.

Required:

a. According to professional requirements, discuss the issues your firm is expected to address in her correspondence with Sejumade Uzoma & Co. (10 Marks)

b. Evaluate the various circumstances that would lead to change in professional appointment. (5 Marks)

c. In consideration of the client, analyze the procedures necessary for proper client identification in accordance with anti-money laundering requirements. (5 Marks)

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AAA – Nov 2016 – L3 – Q2 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss ethical and legal obligations of auditors regarding independence, confidentiality, money laundering, and client competition safeguards.

As an Audit Manager in a big audit firm in Nigeria, you were opportuned to attend a conference on Professional Ethics and Anti-Money Laundering in New York. On your return, one of the audit seniors went through the presentations and asked questions on some of the statements she noted in the presentations.

You are required to explain the following statements to her:

a. A good Auditor is an independent auditor. (5 Marks)
b. The Accountant’s normal professional duty of confidentiality to clients is not an adequate defence where money laundering is involved. (5 Marks)
c. Specific obligations for detecting and reporting suspicions of money laundering are placed on professional firms. (5 Marks)
d. A firm might act for two clients that are in direct competition with each other where there are acceptable safeguards. (5 Marks)

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q5 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Identify and discuss fraud and error in the audit of Badagry Yachting and Marina.

Badagry Yachting and Marina (BYM) have a marina on the West Coast of Nigeria and a large sales operation dealing in yachts and speedboats. You are responsible for the audit of BYM and have found some potential causes of concern that could indicate fraudulent activity or financial misconduct within the company. In particular:

(i) 30% of the yachts on sale by BYM are supplied through one of the major international boating companies with a special finance arrangement deal. However, BYM have also obtained separate finance on these yachts, which are therefore in effect being ‘double financed’.
(ii) Ten yachts shown as assets by BYM cannot be located, with no explanation other than that they have not been sold. These yachts are worth approximately N50 million.
(iii) Long delays have occurred in performing reconciliations, with the last four months of reconciliations still not completed. At the time of the last reconciliation, material differences had been identified upon which no action appears to have been undertaken.
(iv) Sales have been overstated by N100 million in the current financial statements.
The finance director has been off sick with stress for the last five months and therefore has not been available to discuss any of the issues identified.

Required:

a. Explain the difference between fraud and error and how the issues shown here could be categorised as fraud or error. (6 Marks)
b. Discuss the role of management and the role of the auditor in the prevention and detection of fraud and error. (3 Marks)
c. Describe what steps you would take to further investigate and then report on the matters referred to above. (6 Marks)

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q2b – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss the implications of a tax authority investigation into a client after an unmodified audit opinion.

(b) You are a senior manager in Nnamdi & Co, a firm of Chartered Accountants in Nigeria. Recently, you have been assigned specific responsibility for undertaking annual reviews of existing clients. The following situations have arisen in connection with three clients:

i. Nnamdi & Co was appointed auditor and tax advisor to Unicorn Co last year and has recently issued an unmodified opinion on the financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2016. To your surprise, the tax authority has just launched an investigation into the affairs of Unicorn on suspicion of under-declaring income.
(7 Marks)

ii. The chief executive of Hassan Co., an exporter of specialist equipment, has asked for advice on the accounting treatment and disclosure of payments being made for security consultancy services. The payments, which aim to ensure that consignments are not impounded in the destination country of a major customer, may be material to the financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2015. Hassan does not treat these payments as tax-deductible.
(4 Marks)

iii. Your firm has provided financial advice to the Adetunji family for many years and this has sometimes involved your firm in carrying out transactions on their behalf. The eldest son, Verni, is to take up a position as a senior government official to a foreign country next month.
(4 Marks)

Required:
Identify and comment on the ethical and other professional issues raised by each of these matters and state what action, if any, Nnamdi & Co should now take.

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AAA – May 2016 – L3 – Q2a – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss the importance of ethical guidance for accountants in addressing money laundering concerns.

(a) Comment on the need for ethical guidance for accountants on money laundering.
(5 Marks)

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AAA – May 2021 – L3 – Q1a – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discussion of ethical issues and professional challenges in the audit of Blackmart Plc, and recommendations for addressing them.

Blackmart Plc is one of your listed audit clients which offers property management, property financing, and mortgage services to its clients. During the audit of the company, the following matters came to your attention:

(i) Grace Sadiku, one of the audit team members, has provisionally agreed to take out a mortgage facility with a duration of 10 years using the facility of Blackmart Plc to finance her first residential property. In the area where the property is located, the first residential property gets a full tax waiver on the entire installments paid within the first 5 years, which is usually a significant tax incentive. The mortgage facility would be secured by the property and it has been defined as the best offer available in the market.

(ii) Also, during the period, the Human Resources (HR) Manager of Blackmart Plc resigned, and the company had reached out to your firm to provide a staff on secondment till a substantive HR Manager is appointed.

(iii) The management of Blackmart has also informed your audit team that the company maintains only two bank accounts and there will be no need to circularise the banks as the auditors can rely on the balances as generated from the bank’s portal as at the end of the year.

(iv) The audit committee has asked your firm to work with the internal audit team to design internal controls over the part of the accounting system which deals with revenue, and also evaluate the operating effectiveness of the internal controls.

Required:
Prepare a memo to your Manager, commenting on the professional and ethical issues arising from the audit of Blackmart Plc and also suggest to him/her on how to manage the identified issues. (15 Marks)

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – SB – Q1 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Evaluate whether to comply with a former executive’s request for audit services while addressing confidentiality in auditor-client relationships.

Your firm acts as the auditors and advisers to Naija Seven Limited, and to its four directors. The company is owned 50% by Praise Caro, 25% by his wife Madame, and 10% by James Patrick. Braima is the Chief Executive, and Julius is the Finance Director. Julius’ sister, Mabel Mama, recently resigned from the executive board following a disagreement with Praise. Mabel Mama formed her own company, Nigeri Heaven, in competition with Naija Seven.

Currently, Mabel is negotiating with her former co-executives on the profit-related remuneration due to her and the sale of her 15% holding of shares in Naija Seven to one or all of them.

Mabel Mama has contacted you to find out Praise Caro’s current remuneration package since he refused to disclose it to her. She has also requested that your firm should continue to act as her personal adviser, financial adviser, and auditor to Nigeri Heaven.

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q20 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Define the situation where an auditor's role as a rival to the client impairs objectivity.

A situation which puts the auditor as opponent or rival of the client and which may impair his objectivity is termed…………………….

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q19 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Identify the term for codified moral rules and regulations guiding professional behavior.

The codified rules and regulations which are mainly based on moral duties and obligations on how professionals should carry out their duties and how to behave in the society are known as……………….

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AAA – Nov 2013 – L3 – AII – Q12 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Describe the tendency of an auditor not to believe management assertions without supporting evidence.

The tendency of an auditor not to believe management assertions unless they provide evidence to support the assertions is described as professional……………………..

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AAA – May 2022 – L3 – Q4 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss correspondence with previous auditors, reasons for change in appointments, and client identification under AML regulations.

The idea to incorporate Peters & Shamsudeen Haulages Limited was mooted in London and it was incorporated on the return of Alhaji Shamsudeen to Nigeria. He met Peters during his stay in the UK. They had a good relationship which started in a coffee shop. As they met regularly in this shop, what to do on Alhaji Shamsudeen’s return to Nigeria became the subject of discussion. Based on their experiences, the idea of Peters & Shamsudeen Haulages Limited was birthed. Alhaji Shamsudeen subsequently returned to Nigeria, incorporated the company, obtained the appropriate expatriate quota, and Mr. Peters came in and started running the company.

On commencement, Sejumade Uzoma & Co was appointed the company’s external auditors. Whilst Mr. Peters was around, there was a good working relationship between the company and the audit firm.

After about nine years, Mr. Peters returned to the UK, leaving the company in the hands of Alhaji Shamsudeen. Subsequently, Sejumade Uzoma & Co started receiving complaints from Alhaji Shamsudeen and his key accounting staff. These complaints were rife even before the ninth month of the current year that Sejumade Uzoma & Co. decided not to continue with the engagement. The audit fee for the previous year had about thirty percent outstanding at this stage.

This was the position when Alhaji Shamsudeen approached your partner at Musa, Edewo & Co. (Chartered Accountants). Their discussion was fruitful for your firm, hence it was agreed by the partners that full professional procedures would be applied as normal. Part of the information available on interaction is that the year is almost ending, and there was uncertainty about the firm that will do the audit before the engagement of your firm. You have the responsibility of assisting your partner in ensuring that proper documentations would be done without any compromise.

Required:

a. According to professional requirements, discuss the issues your firm is expected to address in her correspondence with Sejumade Uzoma & Co. (10 Marks)

b. Evaluate the various circumstances that would lead to change in professional appointment. (5 Marks)

c. In consideration of the client, analyze the procedures necessary for proper client identification in accordance with anti-money laundering requirements. (5 Marks)

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You're reporting an error for "AAA – May 2022 – L3 – Q4 – Ethical Issues in Auditing"

AAA – Nov 2016 – L3 – Q2 – Ethical Issues in Auditing

Discuss ethical and legal obligations of auditors regarding independence, confidentiality, money laundering, and client competition safeguards.

As an Audit Manager in a big audit firm in Nigeria, you were opportuned to attend a conference on Professional Ethics and Anti-Money Laundering in New York. On your return, one of the audit seniors went through the presentations and asked questions on some of the statements she noted in the presentations.

You are required to explain the following statements to her:

a. A good Auditor is an independent auditor. (5 Marks)
b. The Accountant’s normal professional duty of confidentiality to clients is not an adequate defence where money laundering is involved. (5 Marks)
c. Specific obligations for detecting and reporting suspicions of money laundering are placed on professional firms. (5 Marks)
d. A firm might act for two clients that are in direct competition with each other where there are acceptable safeguards. (5 Marks)

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