Sarbanes-Oxley

Regulations vary a great deal around the world. However, there is a clear trend toward requiring greater transparence in financial reporting and more accountability to investors coming from the European Union's company Law Directives, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the U.S., and comparable initiatives in other jurisdictions.

CEOs and CFOS of listed companies are being held more accountable for the integrity of their financial statements and the effectiveness of internal controls. Directors and audit committees are taking on greater responsibility for overseeing management and for the relationship with the external auditor.

In the near future, investors will see new reports from management and auditors about whether adequate internal control over financial reporting is in place. This information is important to investors because good internal control over financial reporting is one of the most effective deterrents to fraud and a key factor in preventing financial misstatements.

Ermerging Trends in Internal Control: SEC and PCAOB Roundtable Discussion Ernst & Young has prepared a summary report of the May 10 SEC and PCAOB roundtable discussion on year two of the implementation of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The report idenditifes the list of participants, the discussion questions, and provides a summary of comments and views expressed by each of the roundtable's five panels as well as Ernst & Young insights. Read the complete report:				404 Perpectives Issue 1 - Top-Down - Risk Based Approach. This survey, the latest in Ernst & Young's accelerated filer series, contains results from May 2005 and an August 2005 follow-up designed to detect shifts in responses attributable to the 16 May 2005, regulatory guidance. The survey provides a detailed look at responses from 255 companies and spans the first, second, and subsequent years of expeirence with Section 404.
Ermerging Trends in Internal Control: fourth survey and industry insights. This survey, the latest in Ernst & Young's accelerated filer series, contains results from May 2005 and an August 2005 follow-up designed to detect shifts in responses attributable to the 16 May 2005, regulatory guidance. The survey provides a detailed look at responses from 255 companies and spans the first, second, and subsequent years of experience with Section 404.				404 Perspectives Issue 2 - Efficient Testing Strategies for 2006. This survey, the latest in Ernst & Young's accelerated filer series, contains results from May 2005 and an August 2005 follow-up designed to detect shifts in responses attributable to the 16 May 2005, regulatory guidance. The survey provides a detailed look at responses from 255 companies and spans the first, second, and subsequent years of expeirence with Section 404.
Emerging Trends in Internal Controls : Foreign Private Issuers (FPI) 404 Survey 2. This survey, the latest in Ernst & Young's accelerated filer series, contains results from May 2005 and an August 2005 follow-up designed to detect shifts in responses attributable to the 16 May 2005, regulatory guidance. The survey provides a detailed look at responses from 255 companies and spans the first, second, and subsequent years of expeirence with Section 404.				404 Perpectives Issue 3 - Case Studies on Testing In this issue, we explore the subject of testing, with attention to the testing strategies of "real world" companies that have applied the top-down, risk-based approach. Companies have had a range of experiences in response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the subsequent guidance issued in 2005. This publication shares the unique perspectives of six companies from different industries, and they discuss their testing approaches, efficiencies gained and plans to modify their testing processes to realize additional savings in the future..