The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario, the qualifying body for public accounting in Ontario, is moving to strengthen its disciplinary system following a two-year long independent review of its procedures and policies.

These reforms will substantially broaden the reach of the ICAO’s existing rules of professional conduct. In particular, they underscore the ICAO’s position that, in the course of exercising their professional duties, Chartered Accountants are expected to avoid and discourage reliance on any “fringe interpretation” of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.

Among the changes adopted: a Board of Review is being established to review a decision of the Professional Conduct Committee to not make a charge against a member; and, a new independent, Discipline Oversight Board is being established.

The CA profession has been taking action in a variety of areas and will be coming forward with further proposals in the weeks and months ahead. These announcements will include new guidance on the treatment of special-purpose entities, proposals for independent oversight of public company auditors, a reform of practice inspection and quality control for public company auditors including partner rotation, and finally, more stringent rules concerning the independence and objectivity of auditors.

“These reforms reinforce the core values of the CA profession: ethics, integrity, independence and objectivity. Chartered accountants must ensure they continue to measure up, not only to professional standards but to public trust and expectations”, says ICAO president and CEO Brian Hunt. The review was conducted by Tom Allen, Q.C., of Ogilvy Renault and began in April 2000. Hunt noted that the internal review that led to the new, tougher standards began long before the failure of Enron and so, did not attempt to address it directly. He believes, however, that the changes the ICAO has made and will make will “contribute constructively to the ICAO’s ability to address the issues that Enron raises.”