The Relationship between Audit Committee Effectiveness and Audit Fees: Insights from Indonesia

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between the effectiveness of an audit committee and the amount of audit fees. The sample consists of 130 manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) in 2016-2017. Data are obtained from the IDX and company's annual reports. The effectiveness of an audit committee is measured by independent audit committee size, frequency of audit committee meetings, and expertise of the audit committee. Results show first that the size of the independent audit committee has a positive effect on audit fees. This finding suggests that an increase in the number of independent audit committee members produces a higher quality of reporting, and so they tend to choose a reputable public accountant. Second, the frequency of its meetings has positive effects on audit fees. It suggests that the more effective the supervision of the committee to improve audit quality, the higher the audit fees to be paid. However, this study fails to provide evidence that the expertise of the audit committee affects audit fees. The result of this study suggests that the audit committee tends to adopt the demand approach based on the reputation of the public accounting firm accountant firm in determining the amount of audit fees.