Accounting Ethics

This new edition of Accounting Ethics has been comprehensively updated to deal with the rapid changes in standards and regulations which have occurred within the accounting profession since 2002. The authors systematically explore the new range of ethical issues which have emerged in recent years, including the significant impact on approaches to ethical problems which resulted from the Sarbanes–Oxley Act, the financial crisis of 2008, and the move to replace GAAP with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The book begins by investigating the nature and purpose of accounting and follows with a brief study of the nature and use of ethical principles in determining accountants’ responsibilities; it examines the ethical imperatives that bind professionals and the specific principles and rules that various accounting codes dictate. Next, the book explores the major types of practices in which accountants engage – auditing, managerial accounting, and tax accounting – and the responsibilities associated with those practices. The new topics are addressed in a section which highlights the debates over the use of fair–value accounting and principles– versus rules–based standards. With the additional expertise of Julie Ragatz as co–author, Accounting Ethics, 2 nd Edition remains a significant and highly informative text for anyone studying or working in the area of Business Ethics.

Acknowledgments. Preface. Introduction. 1 The Nature of Accounting and the Chief Ethical Difficulty: True Disclosure. I The Nature of Accounting. II Ethics of Disclosure. III The Financial Statement. IV Roles an Accountant can Fulfill. V Development of Explicit Accounting Standards and Regulations. VI The Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SOX). VII Recent Scandals that Provoked More Regulation. VIII Conclusions. 2 Ethical Behavior in Accounting: What Is Ethics?. I What Is Ethics?. II Ethics: The Intellectual Enterprise. III Actions. IV Social Practices, Institutions, and Systems. V Why Study Ethics?. VI Being Ethical: How to Determine What to Do. VII Questions to Ask to Justify An Action: The Basis of Ethical Theory. VIII Using the Reasons. IX Ethical Dilemmas. X Some Classic Moral Dilemmas. 3 Ethical Behavior in Accounting: Ethical Theory. I Egoism. II Utilitarianism. III Kant and Deontology. IV Deontological Ethics. V The First Formula of the Categorical Imperative. VI The Second Formula of the Categorical Imperative. VII Virtue Ethics. 4 Accounting as a Profession: Characteristics of a Profession. 5 Accounting Codes of Conduct. I AICPA Professional Code of Conduct. II Code Principles. III Criticisms of the Code of Conduct. 6 The Rules of the Code of Conduct. I Section 100 – Independence, Integrity, and Objectivity. II Section 200 – General Standards Accounting Principles. III Section 300 – Responsibilities to Clients. IV Section 400 – Responsibilities to Colleagues. V Section 500 – Other Responsibilities and Practices. 7 The Auditing Function. I The Ethics of Public Accounting. II Trust. III The Auditor’s Responsibility to the Public. IV The Auditor’s Basic Responsibilities. V Independence. VI Independence Risk. VII Professional Skepticism. VIII Reasonable Assurance. 8 The Ethics of Managerial Accounting. I Reasons Used to Justify Unethical Behaviors. II Blowing the Whistle. 9 The Ethics of Tax Accounting. 10 Ethics Applied to the Accounting Firm. I Accounting as a Business. II The Social Responsibility of Business. III Good Ethics is Good Business. IV Ethical Responsibilities of Accounting Firms. V The Accounting Profession in Crisis. Afterword: Current Debates on Accounting Issues. I Fair Value and Principles vs. Rules. II Fair Value Accounting. III Arguments For and Against the Fair Value Approach. IV Summary. V Principles vs. Rules. VI Introduction. VII Isn’t GAAP Already Principles Based?. VIII An Example: The Continental Vending Case. IX Recent Developments of “Present Fairly”. X A Better Question. XI Argument for a Rules Based Approach. XII What Would a Principles Based Approach Look Like? The True and Fair Override. XIII Argument for a Principles Based Approach. XIV Conclusion. Appendix A: Summary of Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002. Appendix B: The IMA Code of Conduct for Management Accountants. Index.

Ronald Duska is The Charles Lamont Post Chair of Ethics and the Professions at the American College as well as the Director of the Center for Ethics in Financial Services.  He is the author and editor of several books including, Contemporary Issues in Business Ethics,   Ethics for the Financial Services Professional (with Julie Ragatz, 2008), and Moral Development: From Piaget to Kohlberg . Brenda Shay Duska MT, CPA, is currently a manager at Del Pizzo & Associates, specializing in taxation. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Society for Financial Service Professionals.  She serves on the boards of the non–profit, MusicWorks and the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of the Society for Financial Service Professionals. Julie Ragatz is Assistant Professor of Ethics at The American College and the Associate Director of The Center for Ethics in Financial Services. She is currently finishing her PhD in philosophy at Temple University where she concentrates on ethical theory and applied ethics.

Praise for the first edition: "This book is a long awaited and significant contribution to business ethics. At last, a book that addresses the full range of accounting, tax, and audit issues, integrating the perspective of the accounting profession with that of a trained ethicist. This is a must–read for everyone in the accounting profession and in business ethics. Bravo Duskas!" — Patricia H. Werhane , Darden Graduate School, University of Virginia " Accounting Ethics offers a superb, accessible introduction to the traditions and responsibilities of individual accountants and their firms." — Carlin Romano , The Philadelphia Inquirer "... the author′s clear, practical, and jargon–free presentation makes this book a valuable resource or nonaccountants and required reading for every accountant and student of accounting." — Choice , November 2003 "As a guide to the basic issues and ideas concerning ethics for students with little prior exposure to the debates in accounting and the theories in ethics, this text is likely to be very useful. It is easy to read, informative and provides a good base for discussion." — European Accounting Review