Assume that in the previous situation, the “concurring” partner had only been out one year (e.g., the 2003 audit) before the new rules became effective. Can the partner return to the engagement in 2004, and, if so, for how long?
The partner would be allowed to return to the engagement in 2004 with a fresh clock. It should be noted that this is different for the “concurring” partner than it is for the “lead” partner (see response to Question 3). These situations are different because the “concurring” partner previously did not have a rotation requirement and, therefore, did not have a stated “time out” period. Therefore, the staff believes that it would be inappropriate to impose the two-year time out period (which previously applied only to the “lead” partner) to the “concurring” partner.
Related Questions
- Assume that in the previous situation, the "lead" partner had only been out one year (e.g., the 2003 audit) before the new rules became effective. Can the partner return to the engagement in 2004, and, if so, for how long?
- Does the five year rotation of the lead audit partner apply to the period prior to the effective date of the Act?
- Can a previous year’s contracts and related bid documents be released to the public?
