Worldwide: Audit

The SEC has established a new Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit within its Division of Enforcement, consolidating nationwide resources to investigate public company accounting and financial reporting issues. This organizational shift signals heightened scrutiny of complex accounting matters, non-GAAP measures, and disclosure practices.

Finance teams face critical implementation challenges as new GAAP amendments take effect for 2026, requiring immediate attention to accounting policies, documentation standards, and system readiness. Are your financial reporting processes prepared to handle expanded disclosure requirements, CECL practical expedients, and internal-use software accounting changes before year-end audit fieldwork begins?

The SEC has established a specialized Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit within its Division of Enforcement to investigate accounting fraud, financial reporting misconduct, and failures by auditing professionals. Led by experienced enforcement personnel, this unit signals intensified scrutiny of public company financial statements, audit quality, and gatekeeper accountability across high-risk accounting areas.

Texas Senate Bill 1851 has transformed municipal audit deadlines from administrative requirements into critical financial management priorities. Municipalities that miss the 180-day filing deadline now risk losing their ability to adopt property tax rates above the no-new-revenue rate, directly impacting budget flexibility and revenue planning. Understanding the new enforcement mechanisms and implementing strategic audit planning practices can help Texas cities maintain compliance and avoid significant budg

Organizations are embedding AI into internal audit workflows to improve consistency and shorten testing cycles, but success requires a structured approach that addresses evidence handling, testing methodology...

GASB’s proposed amendment to Statement No. 34 could significantly change how infrastructure assets in governmental financial statements are defined, depreciated, and disclosed.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has launched a comprehensive review of the Consolidated Audit Trail, questioning whether the system should continue in its current form after costs ballooned from an estimated $55.8 million to over $248 million annually. The concept release solicits public comment on fundamental aspects including governance structure, funding models, data collection scope, and whether the CAT should be eliminated entirely in favor of alternative audit trail systems.

A pattern is appearing in Oracle’s Java licensing enforcement that every in-house counsel with an Oracle footprint needs to understand.

For three years, we have been writing about Oracle’s Java licensing enforcement as a slow-motion campaign — one that began with “friendly” compliance emails, continued through a series of escalating sales-team...