Pipara & Co LLP

Consideration of Laws and Regulations in an Audit of Financial Statements

Introduction

Scope of this SA

This Standard on Auditing (SA) deals with the auditor’s responsibility to consider laws and regulations when performing an audit of financial statements. This SA does not apply to other assurance engagements in which the auditor is specifically engaged to test and report separately on compliance with specific laws or regulations.

Responsibility of Management for Compliance with Laws and Regulations
  1. It is the responsibility of management, with the oversight of those charged with governance, to ensure that the entity’s operations are conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations, including compliance with the provisions of laws and regulations that determine the reported amounts and disclosures in an entity’s financial statements. (Ref: Para. A1-A2)
Responsibility of the Auditor (Ref: Para. A3-A6)
  1. The requirements in this SA are designed to assist the auditor in identifying material misstatement of the financial statements due to non-compliance with laws and regulations. However, the auditor is not responsible for preventing non- compliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.
  2. The auditor is responsible for obtaining reasonable assurance that the financial statements, taken as a whole, are free from material misstatement,

whether caused by fraud or error.1 In conducting an audit of financial statements, the auditor takes into account the applicable legal and regulatory framework. Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that some material misstatements in the financial statements may not be detected, even though the audit is properly planned and performed in accordance with the SAs.2 In the context of laws and regulations, the potential effects of inherent limitations on the auditor’s ability to detect material misstatements are greater for such reasons as the following:

  • There are many laws and regulations, relating principally to the operating aspects of an entity that typically do not affect the financial statements and are not captured by the entity’s information systems relevant to financial reporting.
  • Non-compliance may involve conduct designed to conceal it, such as collusion, forgery, deliberate failure to record transactions, management override of controls or intentional misrepresentations being made to the auditor.
  • Whether an act constitutes non-compliance is ultimately a matter for legal determination by a court of law.

Ordinarily, the further removed non-compliance is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely the auditor is to become aware of it or to recognise the non-compliance.

  1. This SA distinguishes the auditor’s responsibilities in relation to compliance with two different categories of laws and regulations as follows:
  1. The provisions of those laws and regulations generally recognised to have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements such as tax and labour laws. (see paragraph 13); and
  2. Other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the determination of the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, but compliance with which may be fundamental to the operating aspects of the business, to an entity’s ability to continue its business, or to avoid material penalties (for example, compliance with the terms of an operating license, compliance with regulatory solvency requirements, or compliance with environmental regulations); non-compliance with such laws and regulations may therefore have a material effect on the financial statements (see paragraph 14).
  1. In this SA, differing requirements are specified for each of the above

1 SA 200, paragraph 5.

2 SA 200, paragraph A52.

categories of laws and regulations. For the category referred to in paragraph 6(a), the auditor’s responsibility is to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence about compliance with the provisions of those laws and regulations. For the category referred to in paragraph 6(b), the auditor’s responsibility is limited to undertaking specified audit procedures to help identify non-compliance with those laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements.

The auditor is required by this SA to remain alert to the possibility that other audit procedures applied for the purpose of forming an opinion on financial statements may bring instances of identified or suspected non-compliance to the auditor’s attention. Maintaining professional skepticism throughout the audit, as required by SA 200,3 is important in this context, given the extent of laws and regulations that affect the entity.

Effective Date
This SA is effective for audits of financial statements for periods beginning on or after April 1, 2009.
Objectives
  1. The objectives of the auditor are:
  1. To obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding compliance with the provisions of those laws and regulations generally recognised to have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements;
  2. To perform specified audit procedures to help identify instances of non- compliance with other laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements; and
  3. To respond appropriately to non-compliance or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations identified during the audit.
Definition
  1. For the purposes of this SA, the following term has the meaning attributed below:

Non-compliance – Acts of omission or commission by the entity, either intentional or unintentional, which are contrary to the prevailing laws or3 SA 200, paragraph 15.

regulations. Such acts include transactions entered into by, or in the name of, the entity, or on its behalf, by those charged with governance, management or employees. Non-compliance does not include personal misconduct (unrelated to the business activities of the entity) by those charged with governance, management or employees of the entity.

Requirements
The Auditor’s Consideration of Compliance with Laws and Regulations
  1. As part of obtaining an understanding of the entity and its environment in accordance with SA 315,4 the auditor shall obtain a general understanding of:
    1. The legal and regulatory framework applicable to the entity and the industry or sector in which the entity operates; and
  • How the entity is complying with that framework. (Ref: Para. A7)
  • The auditor shall obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding compliance with the provisions of those laws and regulations generally recognised to have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. (Ref: Para. A8)
  1. The auditor shall perform the following audit procedures to help identify instances of non-compliance with other laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements:
    1. Inquiring of management and, where appropriate, those charged with governance, as to whether the entity is in compliance with such laws and regulations; and
  • Inspecting correspondence, if any, with the relevant licensing or regulatory authorities. (Ref: Para. A9-A10)
  • During the audit, the auditor shall remain alert to the possibility that other audit procedures applied may bring instances of non-compliance or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations to the auditor’s attention. (Ref: Para. A11)
  • The auditor shall request management and, where appropriate, those charged with governance to provide written representations that all known instances of non-compliance or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations whose effects should be considered when preparing financial statements have been disclosed to the auditor. (Ref: Para. A12)
  • 4 SA 315, “Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement Through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment”, paragraph 11.
  1. In the absence of identified or suspected non-compliance, the auditor is not required to perform audit procedures regarding the entity’s compliance with laws and regulations, other than those set out in paragraphs 12-16.
Audit Procedures When Non-Compliance is Identified or Suspected
  • If the auditor becomes aware of information concerning an instance of non- compliance or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations, the auditor shall obtain: (Ref: Para. A13)
    1. An understanding of the nature of the act and the circumstances in which it has occurred; and
  • Further information to evaluate the possible effect on the financial statements. (Ref: Para. A14)
  • If the auditor suspects there may be non-compliance, the auditor shall discuss the matter with management and, where appropriate, those charged with governance. If management or, as appropriate, those charged with governance do not provide sufficient information that supports that the entity is in compliance with laws and regulations and, in the auditor’s judgment, the effect of the suspected non-compliance may be material to the financial statements, the auditor shall consider the need to obtain legal advice. (Ref: Para. A15-A16)
  1. If sufficient information about suspected non-compliance cannot be obtained, the auditor shall evaluate the effect of the lack of sufficient appropriate audit evidence on the auditor’s opinion.

The auditor shall evaluate the implications of non-compliance in relation to other aspects of the audit, including the auditor’s risk assessment and the reliability of written representations, and take appropriate action. (Ref: Para. A17- A18)

Reporting of Identified or Suspected Non-Compliance
Reporting Non-Compliance to Those Charged with Governance
  1. Unless all of those charged with governance are involved in management of the entity, and therefore are aware of matters involving identified or suspected non-compliance already communicated by the auditor,5 the auditor shall communicate with those charged with governance matters involving non- compliance with laws and regulations that come to the auditor’s attention during the course of the audit, other than when the matters are clearly inconsequential.
  2. If, in the auditor’s judgment, the non-compliance referred to in paragraph 22 5 SA 260(Revised), “Communication with Those Charged with Governance”, paragraph 13.

is believed to be intentional and material, the auditor shall communicate the matter to those charged with governance as soon as practicable.

  1. If the auditor suspects that management or those charged with governance are involved in non-compliance, the auditor shall communicate the matter to the next higher level of authority at the entity, if it exists, such as an audit committee or supervisory board. Where no higher authority exists, or if the auditor believes that the communication may not be acted upon or is unsure as to the person to whom to report, the auditor shall consider the need to obtain legal advice.
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