Did the final rule change the Commissions guidance with respect to business relationships?
No. The final rule is consistent with the Commission’s prior guidance on business relationships. The basic standard of the Commission’s prior guidance has now been codified in the rule. In addition, as the adopting release notes, much of the Commission’s previous guidance has been retained and continues to apply. For example, joint ventures, limited partnerships, investments in supplier or customer companies, certain leasing interest and sales by the accountant of items other than professional services are examples of business relationships that may impair an accountant’s independence. In a 1989 letter to Arthur Andersen, the Commission stated: The Commission has recognized that certain situations, including those in which accountants and their audit clients have joined together in a profit-sharing venture, create a unity of interest between the accountant and client. In such cases, both the revenue accruing to each party …and the existence of the relationship itself create a situati
