What action should Fellowes and Associates take to eliminate the potential threats to independence in situations (1) and (2) above? What safeguards should be instituted to reduce the risk of similar independence threats occurring in the future?

The object of this assignment is to assist students to develop critical analysis skills in relation to auditor independence and issues in accepting audit engagements.
This is a written assessment with a weighting of 30%. A marking rubric has been provided to assist you with the marking scheme for this assessment task. The written assessment is to be presented in report format, the report is due on Thursday 5th January 2017 at 11.45pm AEST (Week 7). Moodle will be available to accept assignments from 1st December for students who wish to submit in week 4. The report is to have a maximum length of 1,000 words.
You have graduated with your accounting degree and recently commenced work with Fellowes and Associates Chartered Accountants. As a recent University graduate with top marks in your audit course, the firm’s audit partner, Tania Fellowes, has asked you to prepare a report for the firm’s partners.
Background information
This assignment is based on the Professional Application Question 2.37 in your e-text. Fellowes and Associates Chartered Accountants is a successful mid-tier accounting firm with a large range of clients across Australia. During the 2014 year Fellowes and Associates gained a new client, Health Care Holdings Group (HCHG), which owns 100 per cent of the following entities:
• Shady Oaks Hospital, a private hospital group
• Gardens Nursing Home Pty Ltd, a private nursing home
• Total Cancer Care Limited (TCCL), a private oncology clinic that specialises in the treatment of cancer.
Year-end for all HCHG entities is 30 June.
TCCL owns two relatively old linear accelerators used in radiation therapy. Recently, radiographers using these linear accelerators have raised concerns that they have adverse radiation impacts on patients.
The CEO of TCCL, Betty Buick, has approached Tania Fellowes, the audit partner responsible for the financial report audit, about undertaking an engagement in respect of the linear accelerators. Betty has requested Tania provide an opinion that the linear accelerators are fit for use. Betty pointed out that the TCCL audit is up for tender the following year and suggested Fellowes and Associates might like to take on the linear accelerators engagement without charging a fee as a gesture of goodwill.
Prior to the appointment of Fellowes and Associates as the auditor for the group which controls TCCL, HCHG, for the 2014 financial year, some preliminary analysis by Tania Fellowes identified the following situations:
1. One of the accountants intended to be part of the 2014 audit team owns shares in HCHG. The accountant’s interest is not material to him.
2. Fellowes and Associates was previously engaged by HCHG to value its intellectual property. The consolidated balance sheet (statement of financial position) as at 30 June 2014 includes intangible assets of $30 million, which were valued by Fellowes and Associates on 1 March 2014 following HCHG’s acquisition of the subsidiary Shady Oaks Hospital. The intangibles are considered material to HCHG.
Assignment Requirements
The audit partner requires a written short report to be presented in simple language and in an interesting, easy-to-read format. It should:
i. Using your knowledge of APES 110, identify and explain the potential type of threat to Fellowes and Associates’ independence in situations (1) and (2) above.
ii. What action should Fellowes and Associates take to eliminate the potential threats to independence in situations (1) and (2) above? What safeguards should be instituted to reduce the risk of similar independence threats occurring in the future?
Formatting Requirements
Please note that penalties will apply for not following the formatting instructions.
The Report will consist of:
• Cover page which shows the title of the report, the author (Student name and ID number) and the word count
• table of contents
• a one-page executive summary
• the report itself
• references
Presentation. The report is required to be prepared in 1.5 line spacing, using a Times New Roman 12 point font, with 2 cm margins on all sides (remember penalties apply for not following instructions). You are required to cite at least four (4) current sources which should include items from the following categories: academic literature, textbooks, media, and websites. It is vital that the sources used are reliable, reputable, and relevant, cited in an accurate manner and properly referenced using the APA method. (Please note: Do not include lecture slides in your list of citations, you are expected to refer to the abovementioned sources)
The report should be presented in simple language and in an interesting, easy-to-read format. Digital file. The entire document is to be prepared in an electronically-friendly document format as a single file.
Submission. The report is to be submitted online through the Moodle site for this unit.
Note: Assignments will be checked for plagiarism and ghost writing
The total word length should be no more than 1000 words, (excluding the reference list). You must include your word count on the cover page.
ACCT20040/ACCT20075 Auditing Assignment – Term 3 2016 – Assignment Criteria Sheet
Grade 7 6 5 4 4 Mark
i) Evaluate critically significant APES issues Comprehensive and well-judged evaluation
of auditor independence and responsibilities with reference to APES (8.5-10 marks) Effective and well- judged evaluation of auditor independence and responsibilities with reference to APES
(7.5-8.5 marks)
A reasonable well- judged evaluation of auditor independence and responsibilities with reference to APES
(6.5-7.5 marks)
Some evaluation of auditor independence and responsibilities with reference to APES
(5-6.5 marks) Little evaluation of auditor independence and responsibilities with reference to APES
( 5 marks) /10
ii) Evaluate critically potential threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence Comprehensive and well-judged identification of threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence (8.5-10 marks) Effective and welljudged identification of threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence
(7.5-8.5 marks) A reasonable welljudged identification of threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence
(6.5-7.5 marks) Some identification of threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence
(5-6.5 marks) Little identification of threats and safeguards relating to auditor independence.
( 5 marks) /10
Preparation of a report for the accounting firm partners as directed
by the audit partner
Response to task is comprehensive and concise. Report written in a clear,
logical and structured manner and communicates points to the audit team in an interesting and easyto-read format. Correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and referencing. (8.5-10 marks) Response to task is comprehensive.
Written in a clear,
logical and structured manner and communicates most points to the audit team in an interesting and easy-to-read format. Mostly correct
spelling, punctuation, grammar and referencing. (7.5-8.5 marks) Response to task is adequate. Written in a reasonably clear,
logical and structured manner and presenting some valid points to the audit team. Some spelling, punctuation, grammar and referencing mistakes. (6.5-7.5 marks)
Response to task is adequate. Writing lacks clarity and structure. Response presents some valid points to the audit team. Several spelling, punctuation, grammar and referencing mistakes. (5-6.5 marks) Response to task was unclear, illogical and unstructured. Little or no presentation of valid points to the audit team. Unsatisfactory spelling, punctuation, grammar and acknowledgement of sources. ( 5 marks) /10
Total Mark