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Do Audit Clients Successfully Engage in Opinion Shopping? Partner‐Level Evidence

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  • FENG CHEN
  • SONGLAN PENG
  • SHUANG XUE
  • ZHIFENG YANG
  • FEITENG YE

Abstract

This study investigates whether companies engage in audit opinion shopping activities by exerting influence over an audit firm's decision to switch the engagement partner (“partner‐level opinion shopping”) in the Chinese setting, where the identities of engagement partners are publicly disclosed. Adopting the empirical framework developed by Lennox [2000], we show evidence that companies successfully engage in partner‐level opinion shopping. Further, partner‐level opinion shopping is more likely to be successful if a company is economically important to an audit firm, and it is less likely to be successful if the audit firm is formed as a partnership rather than a corporation. We also find that companies successfully engaging in partner‐level opinion shopping exhibit significantly lower earnings quality. Finally, we directly compare audit records between incoming and outgoing partners and find that, for companies that successfully improve audit opinions after partner switching, incoming partners have a significantly higher propensity to issue clean opinions than their outgoing counterparts.

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  • Feng Chen & Songlan Peng & Shuang Xue & Zhifeng Yang & Feiteng Ye, 2016. "Do Audit Clients Successfully Engage in Opinion Shopping? Partner‐Level Evidence," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(1), pages 79-112, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:joares:v:54:y:2016:i:1:p:79-112
    DOI: 10.1111/1475-679X.12097
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    Cited by:

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    3. Yangyang Chen & Jun Huang & Ting Li & Jeffrey Pittman, 2022. "It's a Small World: The Importance of Social Connections with Auditors to Mutual Fund Managers’ Portfolio Decisions," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(3), pages 901-963, June.
    4. Beatriz García Osma & Belén Gill de Albornoz Noguer & Elena De las Heras Cristobal, 2016. "Opinion shopping: Partner versus firm-level evidence," Working Papers. Serie EC 2016-02, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
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    7. Zvi Singer & Jing Zhang, 2022. "Do companies try to conceal financial misstatements through auditor shopping?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1-2), pages 140-180, January.
    8. Yujie Zhao & Nianhang Xu & Donghua Zhou & Kam C. Chan, 2020. "Audit partner rotation and negative information hoarding: evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 60(5), pages 4693-4722, December.
    9. Krishnan, Gopal V. & Singer, Zvi & Zhang, Jing, 2023. "Audit partner ethnicity and salient audit phenomena," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    10. Mercedes Mareque & Elena Rivo-López & Mónica Villanueva-Villar & Santiago Lago-Peñas, 2019. "Audit Opinions: Are They Really Different for Family Businesses?," SAGE Open, , vol. 9(2), pages 21582440198, June.
    11. Melinda Timea FULOP & Nicolae MAGDAS & George Silviu CORDOS, 2019. "Theoretical Background Of Internal And External Environment Of Negotiation," Annales Universitatis Apulensis Series Oeconomica, Faculty of Sciences, "1 Decembrie 1918" University, Alba Iulia, vol. 1(21), pages 1-3.
    12. Guang-Zheng Chen, 2020. "Related Party Transactions and Opinion Shopping," Journal of Applied Finance & Banking, SCIENPRESS Ltd, vol. 10(1), pages 1-9.
    13. Cook, Jonathan & Kowaleski, Zachary T. & Minnis, Michael & Sutherland, Andrew & Zehms, Karla M., 2020. "Auditors are known by the companies they keep," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(1).
    14. Tong, Lijing & Wu, Bin & Zhang, Min, 2022. "Do auditors’ early-life socioeconomic opportunities improve audit quality? Evidence from China," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(2).
    15. Anna Alon & Oksana Kim, 2022. "Protectionism through legislative layering: Implications for auditors and investors," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(3), pages 363-383, September.
    16. Abdul Rahman Al Natour & Naim Salameh Al-Qadi & Rasmi Meqbel & Hala Zaidan & Hamzah Al-Mawali & Manaf Al-Okaily, 2023. "The Role of Privatisation in Sustaining Auditor Independence: Evidence from the Developing Markets," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-17, April.
    17. Clive S. Lennox & Jaime J. Schmidt & Anne M. Thompson, 2023. "Why are expanded audit reports not informative to investors? Evidence from the United Kingdom," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 28(2), pages 497-532, June.
    18. Fuxiu Jiang & Kenneth A Kim, 2020. "Corporate Governance in China: A Survey [The role of boards of directors in corporate governance: a conceptual framework and survey]," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 24(4), pages 733-772.
    19. Xiong, Hao & Hou, Fei & Li, Hanwen & Wang, Huabing, 2020. "Does rice farming shape audit quality: Evidence from signing auditors level analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 403-420.
    20. Huacheng Wang & Kangtao Ye & Kai Zhong, 2018. "Accounting research in China: commemorating the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up," Frontiers of Business Research in China, Springer, vol. 12(1), pages 1-37, December.
    21. Fan, Yunqi & Xu, Zijing, 2022. "Audit firm's Confucianism and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    22. Bryan K. Church & Narisa Tianjing Dai & Xi (Jason) Kuang & Xuejiao Liu, 2020. "The Role of Auditor Narcissism in Auditor–Client Negotiations: Evidence from China," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 37(3), pages 1756-1787, September.
    23. Liu, Zhenfeng & Lin, Stephen, 2019. "Determinants and consequences of voluntary switches to Chinese auditors in Hong Kong," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(3).
    24. Weiguo Zhang & Jianfang Ye, 2020. "China's Convergence with IFRS: Analysis of Dual‐listed Companies," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 56(1), pages 104-139, March.
    25. Clive Lennox & Chunfei Wang & Xi Wu, 2020. "Opening Up the “Black Box” of Audit Firms: The Effects of Audit Partner Ownership on Audit Adjustments," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(5), pages 1299-1341, December.

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