A Tree Case

The term project will require you to research a publicized financial reporting fraud or misstatement. You may select a company from the approved list or you may select your own provided that obtain instructor approval. The project is to be completed in groups of four and will consist of a report and a 10-15 minute presentation of your findings.

You report should cover the following:

* A brief background on the company (industry, size etc.)

* An explanation of the fraud/misstatements (who was involved, what was done, the amount, etc.)

* An explanation of who ultimately detected the fraud/misstatements and how

* A discussion of the implications (legal, financial, reputational, etc.) for the company and individuals involved

* A discussion of why the fraud/misstatement may have occurred applying the Fraud Triangle from Chapter 11 of the text

* A discussion of what internal controls (if any) could have prevented the fraud

* If the auditors did not detect the fraud a discussion of why you think they did not

* An explanation of which accounts and assertions were impacted by the fraud/misstatements

* An explanation of what audit procedures the auditors could have performed to detect the fraud/misstatements

* A discussion of the implications (legal, financial, reputational, etc.) to the audit firm of not detecting the fraud

* A discussion of whether, in your opinion, the auditors followed GAAS and if not, what principles you think they violated

Your presentation should be a summary of your report.

Additional Report Guidelines

* Your report should be double spaced using 11 point font and should not exceed 25 pages in total including footnotes

* You should footnote your sources where appropriate and should not copy directly from the company's website, annual report or the course textbook; rather you should paraphrase the information in your own words.

* Some bullets are acceptable where appropriate; however all points must be fully explained

Mark Allocation

The report will be marked out of 75 and the presentation out of 25 for a total 100 marks. There will be no specific allocation of marks to the various questions since each of the discussions may be more or less involved depending on the company that is being discussed. You