Earnings asymmetric timeliness captures both accrual and operating cash flow (CFO) asymmetric timeliness. Because recognition of operating cash flows does not reflect differential verification thresholds for recognizing unrealized gains versus losses, CFO asymmetry adds noise or bias to tests of...

Extant research commonly uses indicator variables for industry membership to proxy for securities litigation risk. We provide evidence on the construct validity of this measure by reporting on the predictive ability of alternative models of litigation risk. While the industry measure alone does...

This article reviews the reactions of the French accounting profession and academia following the collapse of both Enron and Andersen. It considers the general impact on University accounting education programmes and the value of using corporate scandals in the teaching process.

We examine how the threat of litigation affects an entrepreneur's reporting behavior when the entrepreneur (i) can misrepresent his privately observed information, (ii) pays legal damages out of his own pocket, and (iii) is optimistic about the firm's prospects relative to investors. We find...

We develop an economic theory on the endogenous relationship between corporate disclosure and shareholder litigation and derive three key results. (i) Decreasing litigation risk can lead to more or less disclosure due a trade-off between the deterrence and the insurance effects of litigation....

This study examines the response of First Call financial analysts to company restatements and corrective disclosures that lead to an allegation of securities fraud and compares this with the response of three other informed investor groups - insiders, short sellers, and institutions. The sample...

While much has been written about the ability of financial analysts to predict periodic earnings, little has been documented on the behavior of analysts around irregular events. Such events can have significant effects on earnings and market capitalization. This study examines the response of...

This study examines the role of media coverage on meritorious shareholder litigation. Asserting a causal effect of the media on litigation is normally difficult due to the endogenous nature of media coverage. However, we use the Wall Street Journal’s backdating coverage to overcome these...

This is the first comprehensive examination of the stock option backdating litigation. One reason why it is important to study the stock option backdating litigation is that it was a blend of financial reporting fraud and executive misappropriation of assets. Sometimes the executive...

Auditors' incentives to be conservative are likely to vary both cross-sectionally and over time based on their legal liability exposure. We predict that Big Eight (Six/Five) auditors are likely to be more conservative than non-Big Eight Auditors. We show that the earnings reported by Big Eight...