May 2013 - Journal of Accountancy

One CPA firm is still recovering from a “superstorm” that damaged nine of its 14 offices. Another has constructed a safe room in its new office, which was built after a tornado destroyed its previous office. A third firm is adjusting to the “new normal” in a city forever changed

Editor’s note: Beth Schneider is the chair of the AICPA Sustainability Task Force under the Auditing Standards Board. Corporate and public interest in sustainability and climate change issues, and voluntary reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions information, has grown significantly in the United States during the last decade. Companies have

The top priorities of forensic and valuation services (FVS) accountants have changed drastically over the past few years, with business development concerns outpacing technical issues, according to a new AICPA study. The 2013 FVS Membership Top Issues Survey found that “bringing in new clients,” the classic business development imperative, ranked

Editor’s note: Also read “Assurance opportunities broaden,” May 2013. Research published in The Journal of Business Ethics in 2012 titled “Multinationals’ Accountability on Sustainability: The Evolution of Third-Party Assurance of Sustainability Reports,” explores the third-party assurance market for external corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting. The authors, Paolo Perego and Ans

Retirement seems like more of a distant goal for a significant number of CFOs—and that might be a problem for those who are looking to move up. According to a Robert Half Management Resources survey of more than 1,400 U.S. CFOs, 38% are more uncertain about when they’re going to

Early in the 20th century, audits of company financial statements served merely as verification for management that a company was productive and efficient. After the 1929 stock market crash, the role of the auditor evolved. The Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 established requirements for

The deductibility of a charitable donation for a conservation easement or restriction on a real property interest is provided for under Sec. 170(h). Even with almost 13 pages of regulations (Regs. Sec. 1.170A-14), this provision is not straightforward, as evidenced by the number of taxpayers challenged by the IRS. Careful

A good assessment of a company’s liquidity is important because a decline in liquidity leads to a greater risk of bankruptcy. FASB describes liquidity as reflecting “an asset’s or liability’s nearness to cash” (Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 5, Recognition and Measurement in Financial Statements of Business Enterprises). Creditors

Sponsored by Drake Software As Congress took steps earlier this year to enact the first major tax reform since 1986, the JofA turned to three leaders in tax policy for their thoughts on the directions, goals, and prospects for reform. Two of them participated as tax counsel staff to congressional