The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has published a report aimed at guiding public accounting firms to develop and implement robust internal ethical policies and procedures (OSC Staff Notice 52-724, Considerations for Public Accounting Firms in Developing Internal Ethics Policies and Procedures, the Staff Notice).
The publication of the Staff Notice follows a series of targeted inquiries made by the regulator to certain public accounting firms that conduct audits of Ontario reporting issuers. The Staff Notice summarizes the scope of these inquiries and communicates observations about the internal policies, practices, and procedures in place at these firms.
The Staff Notice identifies select areas of focus public accounting firms should consider as part of their ethics strategies, such as clearly identifying leaders within the firm with ‘ownership’ of the ethics policies, targeted ethics education training and guidance, and establishing a robust internal whistleblower program. It also provides considerations to help firms comply with requirements related to the dating of audit working papers and internal professional training programs.
OSC Staff Notice 52-724, Considerations for Public Accounting Firms in Developing Internal Ethics Policies and Procedures is available for download from the website of the Ontario Securities Commission.
For more information, please call Barbara Hendrickson at BAX Securities Law (647) 403-4606.
This publication is not intended to constitute legal advice. No one should act on it or refrain from acting on it without consulting with a lawyer. BAX does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy or currency or completeness of the publication. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the prior written permission of BAX Securities Law.
