Would the requirement to communicate with audit committees apply to situations where the auditor is providing a consent (e.g., related to a 1933 Act filing)? If so, what information should be communicated to the audit committee?
Yes. In that situation, the audit report is deemed to be filed. As a result, the auditor would be required to communicate the relevant information to the audit committee. Since the auditor would have communicated the relevant information when the audit report was originally filed, this communication at the time of the consent may properly be restricted to updating the audit committee. However, if in the process of applying audit procedures required by AU ยง711, matters come to the auditor’s attention that would or could have affected the financial statements or the auditor’s report that was previously filed, all relevant information should be communicated to the audit committee.
