IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/journl/hal-01907594.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Audit committee characteristics and audit fees: Evidence from France
[Caractéristiques du comité d’audit et honoraires d’audit : cas des entreprises françaises]

Author

Listed:
  • Ines Maraghni

    (GAINS - ARGUMANS - Atelier De Recherche En Gestion De L'université Du Mans - GAINS - Groupe d'Analyse des Itinéraires et des Niveaux Salariaux - UM - Le Mans Université)

  • Mehdi Nekhili

    (GAINS - ARGUMANS - Atelier De Recherche En Gestion De L'université Du Mans - GAINS - Groupe d'Analyse des Itinéraires et des Niveaux Salariaux - UM - Le Mans Université)

Abstract

Our study aims to investigate the relationship between the characteristics of the audit committee and auditor remuneration. We examine the impact of statutory and demographic attributes on audit fees and non-audit services fees. We find significant negative association between the level of audit fees and audit committee independence. We also find a positive association between audit committee frequency meeting and the level of audit fees but we do not find a significant association between audit fees and audit committee expertise. However, this relationship is clearly complex and warrants further research. Our results also indicate that demographic attributes play a complementary role in enhancing the effectiveness of audit committee with respect to audit quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Ines Maraghni & Mehdi Nekhili, 2017. "Audit committee characteristics and audit fees: Evidence from France [Caractéristiques du comité d’audit et honoraires d’audit : cas des entreprises françaises]," Post-Print hal-01907594, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01907594
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-01907594
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://hal.science/hal-01907594/document
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stephen P. Ferris & Murali Jagannathan & A. C. Pritchard, 2003. "Too Busy to Mind the Business? Monitoring by Directors with Multiple Board Appointments," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(3), pages 1087-1111, June.
    2. Jiraporn, Pornsit & Miller, Gary A. & Yoon, Soon Suk & Kim, Young S., 2008. "Is earnings management opportunistic or beneficial? An agency theory perspective," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 622-634, June.
    3. William L. Felix, Jr. & Audrey A. Gramling & Mario j. Maletta, 2001. "The Contribution of Internal Audit as a Determinant of External Audit Fees and Factors Influencing This Contribution," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(3), pages 513-534, December.
    4. Fahlenbrach, Rüdiger & Low, Angie & Stulz, René M., 2010. "Why do firms appoint CEOs as outside directors?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 12-32, July.
    5. Suraj Srinivasan, 2005. "Consequences of Financial Reporting Failure for Outside Directors: Evidence from Accounting Restatements and Audit Committee Members," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(2), pages 291-334, May.
    6. Géraldine Broye, 2009. "Honoraires d'audit et comités d'audit : le cas de la France," ACCRA, Association francophone de comptabilité, vol. 15(1), pages 199-224.
    7. van Veen, Kees & Marsman, Ilse, 2008. "How international are executive boards of European MNCs? Nationality diversity in 15 European countries," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 188-198, June.
    8. Claudio Loderer & Urs Peyer, 2002. "Board Overlap, Seat Accumulation and Share Prices," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 8(2), pages 165-192, June.
    9. Ferdinand A. Gul, 2006. "Auditors' Response to Political Connections and Cronyism in Malaysia," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(5), pages 931-963, December.
    10. Cédric Lesage & Chiraz Ben Ali, 2013. "Les auditeurs financiers face aux conflits d'agence : une étude des déterminants des honoraires d'audit en France," Post-Print hal-00853061, HAL.
    11. Mahbub Zaman & Mohammed Hudaib & Roszaini Haniffa, 2011. "Corporate Governance Quality, Audit Fees and Non-Audit Services Fees," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(1-2), pages 165-197, January.
    12. Gul, Ferdinand A. & Srinidhi, Bin & Ng, Anthony C., 2011. "Does board gender diversity improve the informativeness of stock prices?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 314-338, April.
    13. Powell, Melanie & Ansic, David, 1997. "Gender differences in risk behaviour in financial decision-making: An experimental analysis," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 605-628, November.
    14. Johl, Shireenjit & Subramaniam, Nava & Mat Zain, Mazlina, 2012. "Audit Committee and CEO Ethnicity and Audit fees: Some Malaysian evidence," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 302-332.
    15. Zhang, Yan & Zhou, Jian & Zhou, Nan, 2007. "Audit committee quality, auditor independence, and internal control weaknesses," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 300-327.
    16. Jeanjean, Thomas & Stolowy, Hervé, 2009. "Determinants of board members' financial expertise -- Empirical evidence from France," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 378-402, December.
    17. Dechow, Patricia M. & Sloan, Richard G., 1991. "Executive incentives and the horizon problem : An empirical investigation," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 51-89, March.
    18. Adams, Renée B. & Ferreira, Daniel, 2009. "Women in the boardroom and their impact on governance and performance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(2), pages 291-309, November.
    19. Nikos Vafeas & James Waegelein, 2007. "The association between audit committees, compensation incentives, and corporate audit fees," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 241-255, April.
    20. Mobbs, Shawn, 2013. "CEOs Under Fire: The Effects of Competition from Inside Directors on Forced CEO Turnover and CEO Compensation," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 48(3), pages 669-698, June.
    21. Santanu Mitra & Mahmud Hossain & Donald Deis, 2007. "The empirical relationship between ownership characteristics and audit fees," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 257-285, April.
    22. Gopal V. Krishnan & Gnanakumar Visvanathan, 2008. "Does the SOX Definition of an Accounting Expert Matter? The Association between Audit Committee Directors' Accounting Expertise and Accounting Conservatism," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(3), pages 827-858, September.
    23. Nikos Vafeas, 2003. "Length of Board Tenure and Outside Director Independence," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(7‐8), pages 1043-1064, September.
    24. Jenny Goodwin‐Stewart & Pamela Kent, 2006. "Relation between external audit fees, audit committee characteristics and internal audit," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 46(3), pages 387-404, September.
    25. Paul Collier & Alan Gregory, 1996. "Audit committee effectiveness and the audit fee," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(2), pages 177-198.
    26. Oxelheim, Lars & Randoy, Trond, 2003. "The impact of foreign board membership on firm value," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 27(12), pages 2369-2392, December.
    27. Mark A. Bliss & Balachandran Muniandy & Abdul Majid, 2007. "CEO duality, audit committee effectiveness and audit risks: A study of the Malaysian market," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 22(7), pages 716-728, July.
    28. Christian Hoarau & Robert Teller, 2007. "IFRS : les normes comptables du nouvel ordre économique global ?," Comptabilité - Contrôle - Audit, Association francophone de comptabilité, vol. 13(3), pages 3-20.
    29. David C. Hay & W. Robert Knechel & Norman Wong, 2006. "Audit Fees: A Meta†analysis of the Effect of Supply and Demand Attributes," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 23(1), pages 141-191, March.
    30. Nikos Vafeas, 2003. "Length of Board Tenure and Outside Director Independence," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30, pages 1043-1064.
    31. W. Robert Knechel & Marleen Willekens, 2006. "The Role of Risk Management and Governance in Determining Audit Demand," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(9-10), pages 1344-1367.
    32. Harford, Jarrad, 2003. "Takeover bids and target directors' incentives: the impact of a bid on directors' wealth and board seats," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 51-83, July.
    33. Choi, Jongmoo Jay & Park, Sae Woon & Yoo, Sean Sehyun, 2007. "The Value of Outside Directors: Evidence from Corporate Governance Reform in Korea," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 42(4), pages 941-962, December.
    34. David A. Carter & Betty J. Simkins & W. Gary Simpson, 2003. "Corporate Governance, Board Diversity, and Firm Value," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 38(1), pages 33-53, February.
    35. Joseph V. Carcello & Dana R. Hermanson & Terry L. Neal & Richard A. Riley, 2002. "Board Characteristics and Audit Fees," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 19(3), pages 365-384, September.
    36. Simunic, Da, 1980. "The Pricing Of Audit Services - Theory And Evidence," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(1), pages 161-190.
    37. Hunton, James E. & Rose, Jacob M., 2008. "Can directors' self-interests influence accounting choices?," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 33(7-8), pages 783-800.
    38. W. Robert Knechel & Marleen Willekens, 2006. "The Role of Risk Management and Governance in Determining Audit Demand," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(9‐10), pages 1344-1367, November.
    39. Shivdasani, Anil, 1993. "Board composition, ownership structure, and hostile takeovers," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1-3), pages 167-198, April.
    40. Clive S. Lennox, 1999. "Audit Quality and Auditor Size: An Evaluation of Reputation and Deep Pockets Hypotheses," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(7&8), pages 779-805.
    41. Jerry Sun & Guoping Liu & George Lan, 2011. "Does Female Directorship on Independent Audit Committees Constrain Earnings Management?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 99(3), pages 369-382, March.
    42. Stephen P. Ferris & Murali Jagannathan & A. C. Pritchard, 2003. "Too Busy to Mind the Business? Monitoring by Directors with Multiple Board Appointments," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(3), pages 1087-1112, June.
    43. Dan Dhaliwal & Vic Naiker & Farshid Navissi, 2010. "The Association Between Accruals Quality and the Characteristics of Accounting Experts and Mix of Expertise on Audit Committees," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(3), pages 787-827, September.
    44. Eliezer M. Fich & Anil Shivdasani, 2006. "Are Busy Boards Effective Monitors?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(2), pages 689-724, April.
    45. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    46. Christian Andres & Inga Bongard & Mirco Lehmann, 2013. "Is Busy Really Busy? Board Governance Revisited," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(9-10), pages 1221-1246, November.
    47. Christian Hoarau & Robert Teller, 2007. "IFRS : les normes comptables du nouvel ordre économique global ?," ACCRA, Association francophone de comptabilité, vol. 13(3), pages 3-20.
    48. Morck, Randall & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 1988. "Management ownership and market valuation," Scholarly Articles 29407535, Harvard University Department of Economics.
    49. Fich, Eliezer M. & Shivdasani, Anil, 2007. "Financial fraud, director reputation, and shareholder wealth," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(2), pages 306-336, November.
    50. Jianakoplos, Nancy Ammon & Bernasek, Alexandra, 1998. "Are Women More Risk Averse?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 36(4), pages 620-630, October.
    51. Anthony Moung Yin Chan & Guoping Liu & Jerry Sun, 2013. "Independent audit committee members’ board tenure and audit fees," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 53(4), pages 1129-1147, December.
    52. Rusmin & J-L.W. Mitchell Van Der Zahn & Greg Tower & Alistair M. Brown, 2006. "Auditor independence, auditor specialisation and earnings management: further evidence from Singapore," International Journal of Accounting, Auditing and Performance Evaluation, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 3(2), pages 166-193.
    53. Rani Hoitash & Udi Hoitash, 2009. "The role of audit committees in managing relationships with external auditors after SOX: Evidence from the USA," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 24(4), pages 368-397, April.
    54. Maretno Agus Harjoto & Indrarini Laksmana & Robert Lee, 2015. "The impact of demographic characteristics of CEOs and directors on audit fees and audit delay," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 30(8/9), pages 963-997, October.
    55. Fama, Eugene F & Jensen, Michael C, 1983. "Separation of Ownership and Control," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 301-325, June.
    56. Winfried Ruigrok & Simon Peck & Sabina Tacheva, 2007. "Nationality and Gender Diversity on Swiss Corporate Boards," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(4), pages 546-557, July.
    57. DeAngelo, Linda Elizabeth, 1981. "Auditor size and audit quality," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(3), pages 183-199, December.
    58. Morck, Randall & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 1988. "Management ownership and market valuation : An empirical analysis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1-2), pages 293-315, January.
    59. Chiraz Ben Ali & Cédric Lesage, 2013. "Les auditeurs financiers face aux conflits d'agence : une étude des déterminants des honoraires d'audit en France," Comptabilité - Contrôle - Audit, Association francophone de comptabilité, vol. 19(1), pages 59-89.
    60. Riadh Manita, 2008. "La qualité de l’audit externe : Proposition d’une grille d’évaluation axée sur le processus d’audit," Post-Print hal-00565485, HAL.
    61. Deli, Daniel N. & Gillan, Stuart L., 2000. "On the demand for independent and active audit committees," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 6(4), pages 427-445, December.
    62. Engel, Ellen & Hayes, Rachel M. & Wang, Xue, 2010. "Audit committee compensation and the demand for monitoring of the financial reporting process," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1-2), pages 136-154, February.
    63. Stuart Turley & Mahbub Zaman, 2004. "The Corporate Governance Effects of Audit Committees," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 8(3), pages 305-332, June.
    64. Nathalie Gonthier-Besacier & Alain Schatt, 2006. "Determinants of Audit Fees for French Quoted Firms," Working Papers CREGO 1060301, Université de Bourgogne - CREGO EA7317 Centre de recherches en gestion des organisations.
    65. Mark A. Bliss, 2011. "Does CEO duality constrain board independence? Some evidence from audit pricing," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 51(2), pages 361-380, June.
    66. Clive S. Lennox, 1999. "Audit Quality and Auditor Size: An Evaluation of Reputation and Deep Pockets Hypotheses," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(7‐8), pages 779-805, September.
    67. Nathalie Gonthier-Besacier & Alain Schatt, 2007. "Determinants of audit fees for French quoted firms," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 22(2), pages 139-160, January.
    68. Paul A. Griffin & David H. Lont & Yuan Sun, 2009. "Governance regulatory changes, International Financial Reporting Standards adoption, and New Zealand audit and non‐audit fees: empirical evidence," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 49(4), pages 697-724, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Wael Almaqoushi & Ronan Powell, 2021. "Audit committee quality indices, reporting quality and firm value," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(1-2), pages 185-229, January.
    2. George Drogalas & Michail Nerantzidis & Dimitrios Mitskinis & Ioannis Tampakoudis, 2021. "The relationship between audit fees and audit committee characteristics: evidence from the Athens Stock Exchange," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 18(1), pages 24-41, March.
    3. Ammar Ali Gull & Ammar Abid & Rashid Latief & Muhammad Usman, 2021. "Women on board and auditors’ assessment of the risk of material misstatement," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 11(4), pages 679-708, December.
    4. Salau ABDULMALIK O. & Ayoib CHE AHMAD, 2016. "Boardroom diversity and audit fees: director ethnicity, independence and nationality," The Audit Financiar journal, Chamber of Financial Auditors of Romania, vol. 14(136), pages 413-413, Aprilie.
    5. Husam Aldamen & Janice Hollindale & Jennifer L. Ziegelmayer, 2018. "Female audit committee members and their influence on audit fees," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 58(1), pages 57-89, March.
    6. Ines Maraghni & Mehdi Nekhili & Tawhid Chtioui, 2016. "Caractéristiques du comité d'audit et étendue du reporting sur le contrôle interne : cas des entreprises françaises," Post-Print hal-01901185, HAL.
    7. Hidaya Lawati & Khaled Hussainey & Roza Sagitova, 2021. "Disclosure quality vis-à-vis disclosure quantity: Does audit committee matter in Omani financial institutions?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 557-594, August.
    8. Fernández Méndez, Carlos & Pathan, Shams & Arrondo García, Rubén, 2015. "Monitoring capabilities of busy and overlap directors: Evidence from Australia," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(PA), pages 444-469.
    9. Gull, Ammar Ali & Nekhili, Mehdi & Nagati, Haithem & Chtioui, Tawhid, 2018. "Beyond gender diversity: How specific attributes of female directors affect earnings management," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(3), pages 255-274.
    10. Bill Francis & Iftekhar Hasan & Qiang Wu, 2015. "Professors in the Boardroom and Their Impact on Corporate Governance and Firm Performance," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 44(3), pages 547-581, September.
    11. Goh, Lisa & Gupta, Aditi, 2016. "Remuneration of non-executive directors: Evidence from the UK," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 379-399.
    12. Alhababsah, Salem & Yekini, Sina, 2021. "Audit committee and audit quality: An empirical analysis considering industry expertise, legal expertise and gender diversity," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    13. Kathy Fogel & Liping Ma & Randall Morck, 2021. "Powerful independent directors," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 50(4), pages 935-983, December.
    14. Raúl Barroso & Chiraz Ben Ali & Cédric Lesage, 2018. "Blockholders’ Ownership and Audit Fees: The Impact of the Corporate Governance Model," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(1), pages 149-172, January.
    15. Yanmin Gao & Jeong-Bon Kim & Desmond Tsang & Haibin Wu, 2017. "Go before the whistle blows: an empirical analysis of director turnover and financial fraud," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 320-360, March.
    16. Sun, Jerry & Cahan, Steven F. & Emanuel, David, 2009. "Compensation committee governance quality, chief executive officer stock option grants, and future firm performance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(8), pages 1507-1519, August.
    17. Bennouri, Moez & Chtioui, Tawhid & Nagati, Haithem & Nekhili, Mehdi, 2018. "Female board directorship and firm performance: What really matters?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 267-291.
    18. Eunice S. Khoo & Youngdeok Lim & Gary S. Monroe, 2020. "Audit Committee Members’ Reputation Incentives and Their Effectiveness in Monitoring the Financial Reporting Process," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 56(3), pages 348-406, September.
    19. Ghafran, Chaudhry & O'Sullivan, Noel, 2017. "The impact of audit committee expertise on audit quality: Evidence from UK audit fees," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(6), pages 578-593.
    20. Franco Ernesto Rubino & Paolo Tenuta & Domenico Rocco Cambrea, 2017. "Board characteristics effects on performance in family and non-family business: a multi-theoretical approach," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 21(3), pages 623-658, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01907594. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.