Sarbanes-Oxley Act

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was signed into law in 2002, as a result of widespread misconduct within the hierarchy of corporate management. Prior to the act, many corporations habitually published deceptive and ambiguous financial reports resulting in remarkable losses for investors. The problem was made worse by the incessant denial of wrong doing or responsibility by the upper management of these companies, and their outside accounting and auditing firms. The most notorious of theses scams were Tyco, Enron, and WorldCom, but those were merely the largest or most publicized, the problem goes much further.

Is your company Sarbanes-Oxley compliant within the antitrust laws? Contact a CPA to make sure your business meets the Sarbanes-Oxley requirements today.

The act mandates stricter and more responsible accounting practices, which has lead to more financial transparency and accountability from companies and the economic reports they release. This regulation by the U.S. government has had a positive and reassuring result among investors and companies alike. Many financial exchanges in the U.S. have experienced a decline of new offerings because of the financial scandals that tore through the market in the early part of this century. Many American and foreign companies elected to issue their securities in overseas markets, in countries where regulations are viewed to be more “corporate friendly”, as a result of the ramped corruption. Holding upper management or their auditing companies accountable for the accuracy of their fiscal information has helped to restore consumer confidence in the investment market. Though the Act was signed into law quite hastily and various aspects of the law are not considered to have been thoroughly thought through. But new considerations have now been given to some provisions of the law and have been or will be debated again in the near future. Presently, delays in the comprehensive enforcement of the act are dependent upon those provisions facing amendment.

Sarbanes-Oxley sections up for consideration:

• Section 404
• Section 306
• Audit Committees
• Corporate Governance

Not considering any likely changes to the act in the near future, all companies are still held liable for damages and civil actions under the act. The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department must take initial legal action against companies suspected of violations of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act before any civil action can be taken on the part of investors. Protect yourself, your company and your assets by making sure your company complies with the act, that way you avoid any potential lengthy and costly litigation or even imprisonment.

Is your company Sarbanes-Oxley compliant within the antitrust laws? Contact a CPA to make sure your business meets the Sarbanes-Oxley requirements today.