The AICPA's attestation standards and GAAS are classified as general standards, standards of field work, and standards of reporting, and are closely aligned with four concepts: independence, due care, evidence, and reporting. As illustrated in Figure 2-1, some of the standards match almost identically, and others are unmatched—that is, they address entirely different issues. For example, the first general standard of the attestation standards matches the first general GAAS (adequate technical training and proficiency), but the second GAAS of field work (internal control) has no match among the attestation standards.

Required:

For each unmatched attestation standard and GAAS in Figure 2-1, explain why you think the Auditing Standards Board and the Accounting and Review Services Committee did not draft a matching standard.

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Figure 2-1: Attestation Standards and Auditing Standards Attestation Standards Auditing Standards General Standards 1. The engagement shall be performed by a practitioner or practitioners having adequate technical training and proficiency in the attest function. 2. The engagement shall be performed by a practitioner or practitioners having adequate knowledge in the subject matter of the assertion. 3. The practitioner shall perform an engagement only if he or she has reason to believe that the following two conditions exist: The assertion is capable of evaluation against reasonable criteria that either have been established by a recognized body or are stated in the presentation of the assertion in a sufficiently clear and comprehensive manner for a knowledgeable reader to be able to understand them. The assertion is capable of rea- sonably consistent estimation or measurement using such criteria. 1. The audit is to be performed by a person or persons having adequate technical training and proficiency as an auditor.