Statutory Auditors’ Independence in Protecting Stakeholders’ Interest: An Empirical Study

Abstract

The central theme of the book is statutory auditors’ independence in protecting stakeholders’ interest which has created a lot of buzz over the last couple of years. Quite a few books have been published in this field, among which the works of Jones (2011, John Wiley & Sons), Saha (2015, Lap Lambert, Germany), Adelopo (2012, Routledge) and Saha & Roy (2017, Emerald) are notable. The book adds to the existing pool of knowledge by making a cross-country analysis of regulatory and ethical framework governing statutory auditors’ independence in select countries; comparing the statutory auditors’ independence in select cases of corporate accounting scandals; and empirically analyzing the opinion of select classes of respondents on three inter-linked themes that represent the title of the book. Corporate failures and accounting scandals had shaken the investor confidence in the accountability of big corporate houses. There had also been public disquiet about the role of professional auditors associated with these corporate scandals. Every time a scandal got exposed, question on auditors’ independence was raised. In some cases, big audit firms were observed to have a nexus with the management to falsify financial reports and in other; their unintentional negligence resulted in disastrous consequences. Stakeholders were betrayed and ethical responsibility of the auditors was questioned. Hence, statutory audit failure in the backdrop of recent corporate accounting scandals and their irreparable impact on stakeholders’ interest of the business is the main theme of the book.