• More on the auditor change at Catapult

    Last week I wrote about Catapult Communications (NASDAQ: CATT) switching from Deloitte & Touche to a much smaller local firm, in a post called Big Four = Big Fees. In that post I referenced the CFO.com article from which I […]

  • Big Four = Big Fees

    Catapult Communications Corp. in Los Angeles quit their auditors, Deloitte & Touche. And they made public the reason. Deloitte’s fee for 2008 audit = $985,000 Local firm fee for 2008 audit = $561,000 or less (a 43%+ savings) The local […]

  • One way to spot a really bad auditing firm

    I’m embarrassed for this auditing firm. Here are their rates: Non CPA – Staff – $35 / Hour CPA – Non Partners – California Certified CPA – $50 / Hour CPA – Partner – California Certified CPA – $85 / […]

  • Auditors and OTC Company Clients

    An article in today’s Vancouver Sun makes some interesting points about auditing firms and their OTC company clients. OTC companies aren’t very good investments for shareholders, as many have shaky businesses or are really shell companies for other planned business […]

  • Forcing Auditors to Tell the Secrets of Their Clients?

    As a general rule, communications between an auditor and client are private. The information given to an auditor can generally only be disclosed with the permission of the client, or in situations involving SEC filings. But the protection of communications […]

  • Putting auditor billing rates into perspective

    I am still settling in from my office move and upacking some odds and ends. Today I came across a billing rate card from Arthur Andersen. The rates are from 9/1/96 to 8/31/97 for the Milwaukee office, and they are […]

  • SEC fines have gone down

    The fines levied by the Securities and Exchange commission have fallen to their lowest level since 2002. Bloomberg reports that “fewer billion-dollar accounting-fraud cases” and “new policies for fining companies” are to blame. For the year ended September 30, the […]

  • New York CPA Society a little late to the game

    Fifteen years after his felony conviction for securities fraud, the New York State Education Department – Office of Professional Discipline is finally taking away Sam Antar’s CPA license. Sam pleaded guilty to three felonies in 1992. He didn’t renew his […]

  • Overtime Lawsuits For Big Auditing Firm: Could It Lead to Problems For Other Firms?

    Class action suits against auditing firms PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte & Touche are raising questions about future lawsuits. Auditors are suing PwC because they say they were denied overtime pay and benefits, and the suit covers all associates and senior associates […]

  • Beware: Natural Disasters Create an Opportunity for Fraud

    A major natural disaster such as the California wildfires does more damage than just what you see. When the cleanup and restoration begin, there can be more trouble in the form of fraud. Isn’t fraud the last thing you should […]