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Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

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Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Prepared For
Up and Coming
Accountants

Prepared By

February 16, 2008

Letter of Intent

February 16, 2008

To: Up and Coming Accountants

I have written this report in order to fulfill my graduation requirements at Southwestern College. Also to become more knowledgeable on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) and the impact it has had on the business world.

Today I am addressing you on information that can help you have a quick overview of SOX. You may not be an accountant today but if you are studying a business or financial degree program you will learn the role that SOX has set in the business world.

You must be informed, on what SOX is set up for and the intent in which it is to be used.

I have enclosed a report on the importance of understanding definitions and common terms as well as the changes made. I will show you how not to make the errors other company’s have.

We will also take a quick glimpse at court cases that helped SOX to come about.

I would like for you to take from this report the knowledge and confidence that you are better informed on SOX.

Tanya D. Lange, Undergraduate Student
Southwestern College

Table of Contents

Letter of Intent i

Introduction 1 Purpose and Scope 1 Assumptions 1
Fraud
Enron 2 Tyco 2 World Com 3

Understanding SOX 4 Conclusion 5

References 6

INTRODUCTION Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 is the most far-reaching change in organizational control and accounting regulations since the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. The new law made securities fraud a criminal offense and made more strict penalties for corporate fraud. The law now requires top executives to sign off on their firms financial reports, and they risk fines and long jail sentences if they


References: Inflating revenues with bogus accounting entries from ‘corporate unallocated revenue accounts’ (Malik, 2003). Resources Bethany McLean, Peter Elkind, Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron, (Portfolio, 2003) Pg 6-10 Cynthia Cooper (2008). Extraordinary Circumstances: The Journey of a Corporate Whistleblower. Wiley. Ferrell, O. C., Fraedrich, J., & Ferrell, L. (2005). Business Ethics Ethical Decision Making and Cases. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. Lynne W. Jeter (2003). Disconnected: Deceit and Betrayal at WorldCom. Om Malik (2003) Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Accessed February 13, 2008. http://www.soxlaw.com/index.htm
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