Accountant whistleblower protection Archives

Compliance Week Quotes SEC Whistleblower Attorney About Auditor Independence

SEC Whistleblower Attorney Matt Stock Quoted About Auditor Independence Compliance Week article quoted SEC whistleblower attorney Matt Stock in an article titled “Audit committees need to dig into personal relationships.” Matthew Stock, a former external auditor highlighted the impact that independence violations can have on external audit firms and issuers. In addition, he noted that … Continued

Accounting Fraud SEC Whistleblower Attorneys

Accounting Fraud SEC Enforcement Action On March 3, 2017, the SEC announced that homebuilding company Desarrolladora Homex S.A.B. de C.V. (Homex) has agreed to settle charges that it used accounting fraud to overstate its revenues by approximately $3.3 billion during a three-year period. According to the SEC’s complaint, the company reported fake sales of more … Continued

PwC Settlement in $5.5 Billion Bankruptcy Case of Former Client Underscores the Critical Gatekeeper Role of Auditors

In the largest accounting negligence case to go to trial, PricewaterhouseCooopers (PwC) was accused of enabling a $5.5 billion fraud at the bankrupt mortgage lender Taylor Bean & Whitaker (Taylor Bean). Taylor Bean, which had been the largest mortgage lender in the United States not owned by a deposit-taking bank, declared bankruptcy after PwC failed … Continued

Whistleblower Protections and Incentives for Auditors and Accountants

What Whistleblower Protection Laws Protect or Reward Accountants and Auditors? In Lawson v. FMR, the Supreme Court recognized the critical roles that auditors and accountants play in exposing fraud, and the importance of affording these critical gatekeepers robust protection under the whistleblower protection provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX). Lawson. In addition to being protected against … Continued

District Court Rejects Materiality Requirement for Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Actions

Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Need Not Prove Securities Fraud In Donaldson v. Severn Savings Bank, Judge Bredar held that there is no independent materiality element to establish protected whistleblowing under Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This decision is consistent with a recent trend in DOL and federal court precedent declining to require SOX whistleblower to prove that … Continued

SEC Awards More Than One Million Dollars to Compliance Officer

Compliance Officer Receives Whistleblower Bounty for Courageous Whistleblowing to the SEC Today the SEC announced a whistleblower award of more than one million dollars to a compliance officer. The award is significant in that it highlights the critical role of the SEC’s Whistleblower Program in preventing harm to investors. To be eligible for an SEC whistleblower … Continued