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Chartered Accountants of Canada Auditing and Assurance Standards Board / Conseil des normes de vérification et de certification

Auditing and Assurance Standards Board
Decision Summary
November 28-29, 2011

This summary of decisions of the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AASB) has been prepared for information purposes only. Decisions reported are tentative and reflect only the current status of discussions on projects and other matters, which might change after further deliberations by the AASB. Decisions to publish exposure draft and Handbook material are final only after a formal voting process.

For more detailed information about AASB projects, please refer to the project summaries under Projects.

 

7000 Series

The AASB received an update on matters related to the wording of the regulatory consent letter in Section 7115, Auditor Involvement with Offering Documents of Public and Private Entities — Current Legislative and Regulatory Requirements. The AASB and its Securities Regulatory Advisory Group is considering feedback from certain members of the Canadian Securities Administrators as to whether the wording in question is in conflict with the underlying securities regulations.

International Developments

The AASB received an update on a variety of significant global initiatives dealing with matters such as auditor reporting, audit quality and the role of the auditor, and the possible effects of these initiatives on activities of the AASB.

Other Reporting Where No Assurance Is Provided

The AASB discussed issues related to the development of a new Related Services Standard dealing with circumstances when a public accountant who is providing an assurance service is asked to report to a third party matters that have come to the public accountant’s attention in performing the engagement, but on which the public accountant is providing no assurance. The next stage of this project will involve consultations with key stakeholders.

Approach to Developing Canadian Guidelines and Adopting International Auditing Practice Notes (IAPNs)

The AASB discussed matters related to developing Canadian Guidelines and adopting IAPNs. The AASB approved a project proposal to clarify the status and authority of Canadian Guidelines. The AASB also approved exposure drafts that propose:

  • revisions to various sections in the Handbook to clarify the status and authority of Guidelines and the practitioner’s responsibility with regard to Guidelines; and
  • withdrawal of three Guidelines dealing with environmental matters (AuG-19), e-commerce (AuG-32) and auditing derivative financial instruments (AuG-39) that were based on International Auditing Practice Statements that the IAASB has withdrawn.

The exposure drafts are expected to be issued in January 2012 and will have response deadlines of March 30, 2012.

IAASB projects

The AASB reviewed analyses of issues and draft standards to be discussed by the IAASB at its December 2011 meeting and provided input for consideration by the IAASB member nominated by the CICA. The AASB’s discussions related to the following international standards in various stages of development:

  • audit of financial statement disclosures;
  • audit quality;
  • auditor reporting;
  • IAASB strategy and work program 2012-2014;
  • ISA 610, Using the Work of Internal Auditors, and related proposed changes to certain paragraphs in ISA 315, Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment;
  • ISA 720, The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Other Information in Documents Containing Audited Financial Statements;
  • ISAE 3410, Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements;
  • ISRE 2400, Engagements to Review Financial Statements; and
  • ISRS 4410, Engagements to Compile Financial Statements.

Auditing in Emerging Markets

The AASB discussed aspects of a draft Message from the AASB Chair on matters related to auditing companies with most or all of their operations in an emerging market country.