회계법인의 손해배상준비금과 감사품질 간의 관련성

The Relation between Compensation Reserve Fund for Damage of Accounting Firm and Audit Quality

감사실패가 발생한 경우 감사인은 기업의 이해관계자가 입은 손실을 배상해야 할 책임이 있다. 그러나 감사인의 손해배상재원이 충분하지 않은 경우 손해배상책임을 이행할 수 없으므로 감사인의 손해배상책임에 대한 재원을 확보하기 위하여 손해배상준비금 적립과 손해배상기금 전입(적립) 또는 손해배상보험 가입을 법률로서 의무화하고 있다. 이와 관련하여 본 연구는 회계법인의 잠재적 소송위험에 대한 인지정도를 손해배상준비금 당기 적립액으로 대용하여 감사품질에 미치는 영향을 분석하였다. 분석결과, 당기 감사품질과 당기 손해배상준비금 적립액 사이에 양(+)의 관련성이 존재하였으나 손해배상준비금 당기 적립액과 차기 감사품질 사이에는 유의한 관련성을 분석할 수 없었다. 그러나 손해배상책임보험 가입여부에 따라 집단을 구분하여 재분석한 결과, 손해배상책임보험에 가입하지 않은 집단에서 손해배상준비금 당기 적립액과 차기 감사품질 사이에 양(+)의 관련성이 존재함을 발견하였다. 그리고 시장점유율에 따라 4개의 집단을 구분하여 분석한 결과, 시장점유율이 가장 낮은 집단에서 손해배상준비금 당기 적립액과 차기 감사품질 사이에 양(+)의 관련성이 존재함을 발견하였다. 본 연구는 선행연구와 달리 소송위험의 인지정도를 회계법인의 손해배상준비금의 적립비율을 이용함으로써 회계법인 차원에서 직접적으로 측정하였다. 그리고 선행연구는 동일기간에 인지한 소송위험에 대한 감사인의 대응으로 감사노력이나 보수적 성향을 증가시키는지를 검증하였다. 그러나 본 연구는 회계감사의 산출물인 재무제표의 질(감사품질)에 기인한 잠재적 소송위험을 손해배상준비금을 전입을 통해 사후적으로 인지하는지를 분석한 다음 인지한 소송위험을 대리하는 손해배상준비금을 통해 차기 감사품질에 미치는 영향을 검증하였다.

When audit failures have occurred, auditors are required to compensate firm s stakeholders for their loss. If there are not sufficient compensation for damage, the auditors cannot carry out their duty. Thus the law requires that accounting firms should have compensation reserve fund for damage and compensation joint fund or obtain compensation insurance for damage. There are two types of mandatory regulations for preparing compensation for damage for accounting firms. First, every year the accounting firm should reserve at minimum of 2% of total sales, within the firm. Second, the accounting firm should accumulate a joint fund, at minimum of 4% of audit serviced profits, within the Association of Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountant or purchase accountants professional liability insurance. According to Choi et al.(2014), their collected data from 2005 to 2010, only 45% of accounting firms accumulate at minimum of 2% of total profits for the reservefund within the firm, and 15% of accounting firms accumulate at minimum of 4% of audit serviced profits as joint funds within Association of KICPA. FSS requires to prepare the litigation costs to accounting firms for reducing the damage of accounting firms clients and to increase the responsibility of accounting firms. However, most accounting firms do not reserve or accumulate joint funds as much as the mandatory ratio. In this perspective, this paper examines the association between compensation reserve for damage and audit quality of accounting firm. If accounting firms recognize that potential litigation risk is higher, they will increase compensation reserve fund for damage. Due to this, the accounting firms with lower audit quality are more likely to increase compensation reserve fund for damage in the current year. And then they are motivated to improve audit quality in the following year. To measure recognition of potential litigation risk, this paper proxy for litigation risk as the amount transferred to compensation reserve fund for damage. And audit quality is measured as the average of client firms s discretionary accruals. Our empirical findings are as follow. First, accounting firms which has bad audit quality in the current year are more likely to increase compensation reserve fund this year. Second, the amount transferred to compensation reserve fund for damage is not associated with audit quality in the following year. Third, in accounting firms without compensation insurance for damage, the amount transferred to compensation reserve fund for damage is positively related to audit quality in the following year. Fourth, in accounting firms with lower market share, there is a positive association between the amount of compensation reserve fund and audit quality in the following year. Unlike prior studies, this paper measures the level of recognized potential litigation risk directly, using the amount transferred to compensation reserve fund for damage in an accounting-firm level. Unlike previous studies which examine the effect of recognizing litigation risk on audit endeavour or conservatism during same period, this paper explores the effect of audit quality on recognized litigation risk measured as the amount transferred to compensation reserve fund for damage. This paper also investigates the effect of recognized litigation risk in the current year on audit quality in the following year.