Journal of Accountancy articles from December 2004

Journal of Accountancy archives from December 2004

Institute supports CPA financial literacy volunteers.(Certified public accountants)
December 1, 2004... When the AICPA launched its 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy campaign at a May 17, 2004, news conference with U.S. Comptroller General David M. Walker, it promised to deliver a wealth of assistance to CPAs volunteering to help Americans better...

Increasing transparency in peer review: members speak out.
December 1, 2004... At its spring 2004 meeting, the AICPA's governing council approved a resolution in support of increased transparency in the peer review process. It also authorized a member awareness program to inform members about peer review and the related...

Congratulations, you're controller! Now what? Getting control of the new job: a manual for the First Day, the First Week, and the First Month.
December 1, 2004... In order to effectively fulfill your role as a master organizer of huge volumes of financial data, you must first organize your own time and workspace. It's not easy to set personal priorities and manage the deluge of e-mail, reports, letters,...

Become famous for what you do.(techniques for financial planners to become successful)
December 1, 2004... As a CPA/financial planner you could be the best around, but if no one knows it, clients aren't going to beat down your door. Fortunately, there are techniques even a practitioner with a limited budget can use to become locally, even...

The mutual fund trading scandals: implications for CPAs and their clients.(Cover Story)
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * SINCE THE FIRST MAJOR MARKET-TIMING and late-trading scandal broke, a barrage of federal and state enforcement actions against funds has followed. * LATE-TRADING IS ILLEGAL UNDER FEDERAL securities laws and some...

When investor trust is shaken: retaining client confidence in a time of investment scandals.
December 1, 2004... This article, a companion article to "The Mutual Fund Trading Scandals" page 32, discusses the techniques that five investment advisers used in dealing with client concerns over the mutual fund trading scandals. These techniques can be used by...

Small business, big losses: audits and hotlines stack up as the best crime busters in a new ACFE study.(Association of Certified Fraud Examiners)
December 1, 2004... Occupational fraud has become--at least so far--the crime of the 21st century. It is a widespread phenomenon that affects practically every organization. The frauds in the 2004 Report to the Nation on Occupational Fraud and Abuse, from the...

Small firms: think big!(Advertisement)
December 1, 2004... The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has created new requirements for public companies, spurring greater demand for professional services and for a range of engagements that offer opportunities to well-positioned smaller firms. In a series of member...

How to keep them once you've got them: a novel approach cuts turnover to half the industry average.
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * A REGIONAL FIRM, PLANTE & MORAN (P&M), developed and implemented a strategy called "rerecruiting," an ongoing program based on staff recognition and appreciation, to maximize staff retention. Its turnover rate for the...

Staffing woes: the 404 talent war.
December 1, 2004... The word on the street is "Hold onto your staff any way you can. Employees are being lured away with promises of greener pastures, which translate into workplace flexibility and money. Sounds like an old story, but there's a new twist: Section...

Price equals value plus terms: when a firm changes hands, a satisfying deal for both buyer and seller is in the trade-off details.
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * BUSINESS VALUATION (BV), SUCCESSION PLANNING and buy-sell agreements help CPAs prepare a foundation for selling a practice, but the final price of a firm will be affected dramatically by the transaction terms. * TO...

Amortization of certain intangible assets: companies should question the treatment of assets with contractual or legal lives.
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * EVEN WITH THE GUIDANCE IN FASB STATEMENT NO. 142, the useful life of certain intangible assets is difficult to judge, particularly assets that involve contracted or other legally set terms. Companies use the useful life...

The components of value measurement: the worth of a company goes beyond dollars and cents.
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * THE VALUE MEASUREMENT AND REPORTING Collaborative (VMRC) is a global effort intended to help boards of directors, senior management, investors and other stakeholders make better strategic decisions using value...

The future is here: the modernizing of IRS e-file.
December 1, 2004... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * WITH THE ADDITION OF 1120 AND 1120S FORMS AND schedules in February and August 2004, virtually all corporate taxpayers will be able to file their returns electronically--even complex consolidated returns of companies...

Deducting the cost of laser eye surgery.
December 1, 2004... Many American taxpayers undergo clinical procedures to correct vision problems. The most common in today's medical environment is laser eye surgery, commonly called Lasik. Taxpayers cannot deduct the cost of cosmetic surgery unless the...

Court review of IRS abuse of discretion.
December 1, 2004... Various code sections give the IRS discretion to reduce or eliminate a tax liability for equity or hardship reasons. If the IRS fails to reduce a liability, the taxpayer can ask a court to mandate a reduction on the grounds the IRS abused its...

Is "equitable remedy" settlement excludable from gross income?
December 1, 2004... Taxpayers are continually testing the legal definitions of "personal physical injuries" and "physical sickness." The Tax Court recently decided an "equitable remedy" settlement did not meet the criteria for the tax treatment afforded these...

Interest paid as an administrative expense.
December 1, 2004... A court held that interest an estate pays on a charitable bequest is deductible as an administrative expense for estate tax purposes. Betsy Carolyn Turner was executor of the estate of Sally C. Jackson, who died in 1997. Jackson's will made a...

Deducting retirement community fees: medical deductions for elderly clients. (from The Tax Adviser)
December 1, 2004... For clients living in health care retirement communities, the Tax Court's decision in Delbert L. Baker, 122 TC 143 (2004), provides additional flexibility in determining the portion of fees deductible as IRC section 213 medical expenses. CPAs...

The PCAOB and the future of oversight: the board might achieve more by reviewing audit quality controls instead of actual audits.(Public Company Accounting Oversight Board)
December 1, 2004... The objective of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was to make registrant audit committees, corporate management and the auditing profession work together to mitigate the risk of catastrophic audit failures. But as an experienced auditor, I fear...

Directory of AICPA selected services.(Directory)
December 1, 2004... AICPA Foundation 212/596-6225 Academic and career development Education programs, products 212/596-6221 Recruiting materials for the profession ...

Golden business ideas.
December 1, 2004... Block the Workplace Bullies World War II General George Patton and football coach Vince Lombardi, while highly successful leaders, were out-and-out bullies, exercising a brutal form of willpower to achieve unconditional victory on the...