Using a unique setting in which mandatory audit firm rotation was required from 2006-2010, and in which both audit fees and audit hours were disclosed (South Korea), this study provides empirical evidence of the economic impact of this policy initiative on audit quality, and the associated...

Auditors' low-balling in initial engagements is a longstanding concern for regulators and others. We examine the determinants and consequences of low-balling using more recent data. We provide evidence that auditors are likely to low-ball if they are “Big N” auditors, expect future revenues...

Lead auditors frequently rely on work performed by Other auditors, especially when auditing clients with operations in multiple countries. The PCAOB has expressed concern that the quality of such group audits may differ depending on whether the Lead auditor accepts or declines responsibility for...

We investigate the association of location-specific severity of the 2019 Coronavirus pandemic (COVID) with changes in audit fees and delays following the pandemic’s onset. Employing data on lengths of stay-at-home (S@H) mandates to proxy for COVID’s disrupting effects on audits, we find that...

This study investigates the association of audit fee pressure with an inverse measure of audit quality, misstatements in audited data, during the recent recession. Fee pressure in a year is measured as the difference between benchmark “normal” audit fees and actual audit fees. We find fee...