SOX 404(b) Exemption was Passed with the Wall Street Reform Act – But Non-Accelerated Filers are Still On the Hook for Controls

Posted by Teresa Bockwoldton July 28, 2010

Now that the wait for the 404(b) reprieve is over, it appears that a new trend is emerging to investigate 404(a) statements more closely, as expressed in recent articles on investor and auditor sentiment regarding the legislative change. We are hearing from auditors directly that they will be applying more scrutiny to 404(a) statements made by their clients in their financial reports, to ensure that there is a real basis for self-certification. The newly aggressive SEC and DOJ are expanding personnel and focusing on Corporate Governance and the role of Audit Committees, Directors and Company Officers in Compliance and Financial reporting.

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Tags: Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, risk assessment, Announcements, 404, 404 audit, Non-accelerated filer 404(b) information, Wall Street Reform, risk management, Sarbanes-Oxley for Non-Profits

SOX 404(b): What does the Wall Street Reform Act mean for Non-Accelerated Filers?

Posted by Teresa Bockwoldton July 26, 2010

Here at Vibato, we were recently questioned about what the Wall Street Reform Act means for non-accelerated filers with June 30th year-ends. Some lawyers have been claiming that the Wall Street Reform Act will be retroactively applied to these companies, so we contacted the SEC about the issue.

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Tags: Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, Announcements, 404, 404 audit, Non-accelerated filer 404(b) information, Sarbanes-Oxley, Sarbanes-Oxley for Non-Profits

"Two Cheers for Sarbanes-Oxley"? Well, we'll see.

Posted by Teresa Bockwoldton July 21, 2010

The article below was sent from a dear friend of mine and fellow SOX enthusiast, Clark Keeler, Director, BPM.  I find the article to have a significant amount of irony considering it claims that "American business people of a conservative nature have been dreaming about driving a stake through the heart of the Sarbanes-Oxley act ever since the legislation was passed..." It would seem to me that if a person was truly fiscally conservative, they would consider Sarbanes-Oxley to be the prudent choice rather than the radical one.  Internal controls require there to be a check point in a business procedure that requires someone other than the preparer of the documentation to verify the accuracy of what was prepared.  This verification prevents someone from acting alone when making decisions about shareholder assets (physical assets, capital, intangible assets, etc). I am of the opinion that this double check adds a necessary layer of review considering the potential for fraud, errors, omissions, etc.  Considering all that we at Vibato, LLC have found when testing internal controls, this is no longer just opinion but rather, fact.  Read more on the article here:

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Tags: Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, Compliance tools, Announcements, 404, 404 audit, audit costs, Non-accelerated filer 404(b) information, SOX Compliance Made Simple, Wall Street Reform, Sarbanes-Oxley Training, Sarbanes-Oxley, external auditing, Sarbanes-Oxley for Non-Profits

CAQ Reaction to PCAOB Court Decision

Posted by Bill Bockwoldton June 28, 2010

I read this press release this morning and feel that our readers will find it interesting. It details the Center for Audit Quality's reaction to the Supreme Court's PCAOB Decision:

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Tags: Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, Announcements, 404, 404 audit, audit costs, Non-accelerated filer 404(b) information, SOX Basic®, audit scope, external auditing, insurance audit, Sarbanes-Oxley for Non-Profits

Compliance Alert: Status of Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404(b)

Posted by Teresa Bockwoldton June 27, 2010

For those of you who are curious,  the below article from TNBankers.org gives descriptions of some of the key provisions of the Reform Bill that is currently being worked on:

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Tags: Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, Compliance tools, 404, 404 audit, audit costs, Non-accelerated filer 404(b) information, SOX Basic®, SOX Compliance Made Simple, Wall Street Reform, external auditing, Sarbanes-Oxley for Non-Profits