A Comment On The Accountability Of The Accounting Profession

Abstract

This essay reflects on the history, present status, and future promise of the accounting profession. Comparisons are drawn between accounting and the professions of medicine and law. The critique of the profession made by Walter P. Schuetze, former Chief Accountant to the SEC, and the formal response of the profession to this critique are examined. The essay also provides some preliminary suggestions for limiting the use of accounting techniques that do not conform to professional literature and practice. Included in the essay is a discussion of the 1994 report of the Advisory Panel on Auditor Independence, a panel appointed by the Public Oversight Board of the SEC Practice Section of the AICPA.