AUDITORS REPUTATION: THE IMPACT ON COMPLIANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTING STANDARD 5 BY QUOTED COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

This study seeks to ascertain whether or not auditor’s reputation has impact on compliance with
information disclosure in financial statements of Quoted firms in Nigeria. In line with the
objective, an hypothesis was formulated. The population of the study is the two hundred and
thirty – four (234) companies quoted on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange and twenty
(20) quoted companies selected as sample size. This work utilized data from secondary sources.
Data were obtained from the annual accounts and reports of the twenty (20) quoted companies
that made up the sample of the study and the International Accounting Standard 5. The time
frame for this work is ten years, covering the period of 2003 to 2012. The technique of analysis
used in the study was the Spearman’s Rank Correlation Analysis. The study established that
there is no significant correlation between firms’ scores and auditors’ rank. This conclusion
implied that auditor’s reputation does not affect the compliance level of the companies. The
study recommended an effective monitoring/supervision and enforcement of the provisions of the
Statement of IAS 5, in addition to effective implementation of the penalties provided by the Act
on non-compliers regardless of their status or origin. Similarly, the professional accounting
bodies should make sure that their members at all times qualify reports prepared not in
accordance with the requirements of accounting standards, and any failure on the part of the
auditors sanctioned appropriately.