Dr. Zabihollah Rezaee accepted for publication in Current Issues in Auditing

For release:  July 25, 2016

Dr. Zabihollah Rezaee, Thompson-Hill Chair of Excellence and professor of Accountancy, was recently accepted for publication in Current Issues in Auditing, one of the publications of the American Accounting Association (AAA). His paper is entitled "Enhancing Audit Quality in the Public Interest." Dr. Rezaee co-authored the paper with Dr. Jennifer Joe, University of Delaware; Dr. Pamela Roush, University of Central Florida; Dr. Christine Earley, Providence College; Dr. Karen Hooks, Florida Atlantic University; and Dr. Karri-Ann Sanderson, Bentley University.

The Auditing Standards Committee of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association commissioned Dr. Rezaee and his co-authors to respond to the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board's (IAASB) invitation to comment on enhancing audit quality in the public interest. The committee's response was initially submitted to the IAASB and subsequently accepted for publication in the Current Issues in Auditing. The paper addresses three important auditing issues: professional skepticism, quality control, and group audits. Professional skepticism requires auditors to review the judgments and decisions made by management when making accounting estimates relevant to the financial reporting process and to identify whether indicators of possible management bias exist. Quality control refers to the number of audit engagement deficiencies and audit failures. The final issue addressed is the use of group audits, or communications between the group engagement team and component auditors.