TORONTO, Ontario, March 4, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Corporate Governance is the "Hot Button" in todays Public Corporate environment. The post "Enron" world and the reaction that resulted in the passage of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 has made this arena a different place for publicly traded corporations and their Boards and officers. Public accountability and transparency has been vastly magnified and expanded and audit committees' responsibilities and composition have been more clearly defined, become more onerous and the standards elevated.
We at SLF understand this change as well as the apprehension and reluctance of good quality candidates to put themselves forward to populate the audit committees. Furthermore, we believe that the audit committees as now constituted are the "eyes and ears" of the investment public and are an essential ingredient in restoring the faith of the public in the capital markets. We hope that this practical guide for audit committees provides a tool to both alleviate the apprehension of worthy candidates to such committees as well as restore the public's trust in them.
This guide can be used by both committee members who are resident in the United States of America as well as those resident in Canada. We believe that both Jurisdictions are moving closer and closer together and are in the process of harmonizing their corporate governance requirements to such a degree they will soon be indistinguishable from one another.
About Our Firm
Founded in 1935, SLF has withstood the test of time and grown to become one of Canada's largest independent partnerships of Chartered Accountants. The firm's reputation for excellence and dependability is based on providing top quality service to our clients.
With offices in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa, and other affiliated offices throughout Canada and the United States of America and as a member of HLB International, a global network of prominent accounting firms, we have the breadth of vision to provide services of an exceptional quality to our clients, whether they are small family businesses or major multinationals.
SLF is registered to undertake public company audits in both Canada and the United States of America.
A complimentary copy of this guide is available by contacting Gerry Goldberg, CA, Senior Assurance and Advisory Partner directly at (416)780-2203 or on his cell at (416)460-3000, Fax (416)785-5663, or by email at gerry.goldberg@slf.ca .