Finance in a Global Perspective
Autor: Adnan • December 20, 2017 • 10,320 Words (42 Pages) • 745 Views
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March 13, 2014,
Michael J. Kowalski
Chairman of the Board
727 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10022
Dear Mr. Kowalski,
You have requested that we audit the financial statements of Tiffany & Co., which comprise the consolidated balance sheet as at January 31, 2013 and the related consolidated statements of earnings, of comprehensive earnings, of stockholders’ equity, and of cash flows and a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory notes. Our audit will be conducted with the objective of expressing an opinion on the financial statements. Our understanding is that the intended purposes of the financial statements are to report to the Tiffany & Co. shareholders. We are pleased to confirm our acceptance and our understanding of this audit engagement by means of this letter.
Auditer Responsibilities:
As auditors, our responsibility is to conduct the audit in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Those standards require that we comply with ethical requirements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance whether the financial statements are free from material misstatements. An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor’s judgment, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.
Because of test nature and other inherent limitations of an audit, together with the inherent limitations of any accounting and internal control system, there is an unavoidable risk that even some material misstatements may remain undiscovered. In making our risk assessments, we consider internal control relevant to the entity’s preparation and fair presentation of the financial statements in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing a separate opinion of the effectiveness of the entity’s internal control. However, if we identify any of the following matters, they will be communicated to you.
- Misstatements, resulting from error, other than trivial errors.
- Fraud or any information obtained that indicates that a fraud may exist.
- Evidence obtained that indicates that an illegal or possibly illegal act, other than one considered inconsequential, had occurred.
- Significant weakness in the design or implementation of internal control to prevent and detect fraud or error.
- Related party transactions identified by our audit team that are not in the normal course of operations and that involve significant judgments made by management concerning measurement or disclosure.
The matters communicated will be those that we identify during the course of our audit. Audits do not usually identify all matters that may be of interest to management in discharging its responsibilities. The type and significance of the matters to be communicated will determine the level of management to which the communication is directed.
One of the underlying principles of the profession is a duty of confidentiality with respect to client affairs. Accordingly, except for information that is in or enters the public domain, we will not provide any third party with confidential information concerning the company’s affairs without the company’s prior consent, unless required to do so by legal authority, or the rules of professional conduct/ code of ethics of the provincial public accountancy council.
Auditee responsibilities:
Our audit will be conducted on the basis that you, your management team, and the company’s Board of Directors who are charged with governance acknowledge and understand that you are responsible for:
- Preparation and fair presentation of the financial statements in accordance with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles. This includes the design, implementation, and maintenance of internal control relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements that are free from material misstatements, whether due to fraud or error.
- Providing us with all information, such as records, documentation and related data, copies of all minutes of meetings of shareholders, directors, and committees of directors, and other matters that are relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements.
- Providing us with any additional information we may request from the company, such as:
- Information relating to any known or probable instances of non-compliance with legislative or regulatory requirements, including financial reporting requirements;
- Information relating to any illegal or possibly illegal acts, and all facts related thereto;
- Information regarding all related parties and related party transactions;
- An assessment of the risk that the financial statements may be materially misstated as a result of fraud;
- Information related to fraud or suspected fraud affecting the entity involving management, employees who have significant roles in internal control, or others, where the fraud could have a non- trivial effect on the financial statements;
- Information relating to any allegations of fraud or suspected fraud affecting the entity’s financial statements communicated by employees, former employees, regulators, or others;
- Significant assumptions underlying fair- value measurements and disclosures in the financial statements, and management’s assessment of their reasonableness;
- Any plans or intentions that may affect the carrying value or classification of assets or liabilities;
- Information relating to the measurement and disclosure of transactions with related parties;
- An assessment of all areas of measurement uncertainty known to management that are required to
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