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6. Is Professional Scepticism necessary in other Audit areas besides Fraud?

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Throughout the auditing process, Professional Scepticism is vital.

在整个审计过程中,职业怀疑态度是至关重要的。

Professional Scepticism is especially crucial when handling complicated, significant, or highly judgmental audit areas, such as:

Accounting Estimates, Including Fair Value Accounting Estimates, and Related Disclosures – For example, when:

  • Evaluating the reasonableness of the significant assumptions used by management for accounting estimates that give rise to risks to significant risks.
  • Determining whether changes in accounting estimates or in the method for making them from the prior period are appropriate in the circumstances.
  • Review the judgments and decisions made by management in the making of accounting estimates to identify whether there are indicators of possible management bias.

在处理复杂、重大或高度判断性的审计领域时,职业怀疑态度尤为关键,例如:

会计估计,包括公允价值会计估计,以及相关的披露 — 例如,当

  • 评估管理层对引起重大风险的会计估计所使用的重要假设的合理性。
  • 确定会计估计的变化或与前期相比的方法的变化在当时情况下是否合适。
  • 审查管理层在作出会计估计时所作的判断和决定,以确定是否有迹象表明管理层可能存在偏见。

Going Concern

For example, In examining management’s plans for future actions concerning its going concern assessment, consider if the plans are likely to improve the position and whether they are practicable.

The December 2011 IAASB release, Economic Conditions Continue to Challenge Preparers and Auditors Alike; Focus Must Include Going Concern Assumption and Adequacy of Disclosures, stresses the significance of Professional Skepticism and judgement in reviewing financial statement disclosures and the auditor’s report where a material uncertainty exists regarding events or conditions that may cast doubt on the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern.

It also references the 2009 IAASB Staff Audit Practice Alert, Audit Considerations in Respect of Going Concern in the Current Economic Environment, which highlights matters relevant to the consideration of the going concern assumption in the preparation of financial statements.

持续经营

例如,在审查管理层关于其持续经营评估的未来行动计划时,考虑这些计划是否有可能改善状况,以及它们是否切实可行。

2011年12月国际审计与鉴证准则理事会 (IAASB) 发布的《经济状况继续挑战财报编制者和审计师 – 重点必须包括持续经营假设和披露的充分性》强调了在审查财务报表披露和审计报告时,如果存在可能对实体持续经营能力产生怀疑的事件或条件的重大不确定性,职业怀疑态度和判断的重要性。

它还提到了 2009 年国际审计与鉴证准则理事会工作人员审计实务提示,即在当前经济环境下对持续经营的审计考虑,其中强调了与编制财务报表时考虑持续经营假设有关的事项。

Related Party Relationships and Transactions

For example, when remaining alert during the audit for information that may indicate previously unidentified or undisclosed related party relationships or transactions; and in the context of identified significant transactions outside the entity’s normal course of business, when evaluating whether the business rationale (or lack thereof) of the transactions suggests that they may have been entered into to engage in fraudulent financial reporting or to conceal misappropriation of assets or the reliability of external confirmation requests.

关联方关系和交易

例如,在审计过程中对可能表明以前未识别或未披露的关联方关系或交易的信息保持警惕;在已识别的实体正常经营过程之外的重大交易中,评估交易的商业理由(或缺乏商业理由)是否有迹象显示它们可能是为了从事欺诈性财务报告或隐瞒资产挪用或外部确认请求的可靠性而订立的。

Consideration of Laws and Regulations

For example, When doing other audit procedures, auditors should stay on the lookout for instances of non-compliance or suspected non-compliance with laws or regulations that could have a big effect on the financial statements or a major effect on the way the entity does business, which could cause it to shut down or make it hard for it to continue as a going concern.

This may also be relevant in the context of a group audit, for instance, due to business practices and cultures in different jurisdictions.

Another example where Professional Skepticism is particularly important is in relation to auditing significant unusual or highly complex transactions.

The 2010 IAASB Staff Q&A publication, Auditor Considerations Regarding Significant Unusual or Highly Complex Transactions, highlights considerations in the ISAs that are relevant to auditing such transactions, noting that their nature may give rise to risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and, accordingly, may merit heightened attention by auditors.

In addition, in relation to auditing financial instruments, firms’ and auditors’ attention is drawn to the IAASB’s recently released International Auditing Practice Note (IAPN) 1000.

Among other matters, the IAPN re-emphasizes the importance of Professional Skepticism, in particular in relation to the risks and consequences of management bias.

对法律和法规的考虑

例如,在进行其他审计程序时,审计师应随时注意不遵守或涉嫌不遵守法律或法规的情况,这些情况可能对财务报表产生重大影响,或对实体的经营方式产生重大影响,从而导致其停业或难以继续经营。

这在集团审计中也可能是相关的,例如,由于不同司法管辖区的商业惯例和文化。

职业怀疑态度特别重要的另一个例子是与审计重大异常或高度复杂的交易有关。

2010年国际审计与鉴证准则理事会工作人员的《审计员对重大异常或高度复杂交易的考虑》问答出版物强调了《国际审计准则》中与审计此类交易有关的考虑因素,指出其性质可能会引起财务报表的重大误报风险,因此,可能值得审计员高度关注。

此外,关于金融工具的审计,请事务所和审计师注意国际审计与鉴证准则理事会 (IAASB) 最近发布的国际审计实务说明(IAPN)1000。

除其他事项外,IAPN 再次强调了职业怀疑的重要性,特别是在管理偏见的风险和后果方面。

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