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Auditors’ Liability, Investments, and Capital Markets: A Potential Unintended Consequence of the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act

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  • MINGCHERNG DENG
  • NAHUM MELUMAD
  • TOSHI SHIBANO

Abstract

To restore investors’ confidence in the reliability of corporate financial disclosures, the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act of 2002 mandated stricter regulations and arguably increased auditors’ liability. In this paper, we analyze the effects of increased auditor liability on the audit failure rate, the cost of capital, and the level of new investment. We focus on a setting in which, with imperfect auditing, a firm has better information than investors about its prospects and seeks to raise capital for new investments in a lemons market. The equilibrium analysis derives corporate reporting and investing choices by the firm, attestation opinions by the auditor, and valuation by rational investors. Three empirically testable predictions emerge: although increasing auditor liability decreases the audit failure rate and the cost of capital for new projects, it also decreases the level of new profitable investments.

Suggested Citation

  • Mingcherng Deng & Nahum Melumad & Toshi Shibano, 2012. "Auditors’ Liability, Investments, and Capital Markets: A Potential Unintended Consequence of the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 1179-1215, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:joares:v:50:y:2012:i:5:p:1179-1215
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-679X.2012.00458.x
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    4. Sebastian Kronenberger & Volker Laux, 2022. "Conservative Accounting, Audit Quality, and Litigation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(3), pages 2349-2362, March.
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    7. DeFond, Mark & Zhang, Jieying, 2014. "A review of archival auditing research," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 275-326.
    8. Rajat Deb & Mukesh Nepal & Sourav Chakraborty, 2023. "IFRS and Audit Quality: A Systematic Literature Review," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 48(1), pages 118-138, February.

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