A fundamental premise of any external audit is checking assertions and searching for evidence to either corroborate or refute these assertions. Which of the following statements best describes the idea of an assertion and who holds responsibility for the assertions made? O Assertions are statements made by management regarding the presentation and disclosure of notes contained in the financial statements and measurement of account balances contained in the notes to the financial statements. O Management and the external auditors hold joint responsibility for the assertions contained in the financial statements because management prepares the financial statements which are then checked by the auditors. O Assertions are made by the client's management, and are implicit within the financial statements. Management holds ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of these assertions. Assertions are made by the auditing firm after a careful preliminary review of the industry in which the client operates and any specific operating characteristics that may be unique to the client. eTextbook and Media