FOR THISFICTIONALFACT PATTERN, INDICATE WHO HOLDS THE BURDEN OF PROOF IN THE CASE AND WHAT LEVEL OF NEGLIGENCE/LIABILITY MUST BE PROVED TO HOLD THE AUDITOR ACCOUNTABLE, AND WHY:

Marriott Hotels is a publicly traded hotel group that has struggled through the pandemic.Many of its hotels are owned by independent investment groups who operate through a license agreement under the Marriott brand.In order to raise capital to continue operations, Marriott sells additional shares to the public based on its audited financial statements.Unfortunately the statements do not include disclosures of litigation pending against many individual Marriott hotels for guests contracting Covid while staying at the hotel.Shareholders are suing the Houston based accounting firm Cheating Astros LLP claiming that the auditors should have ensured that disclosures for pending and threatened litigation were appropriate.

Auditors are expected to be vigilant about fraud.What expectation gap exists between what the public (including Congress) expect auditors to search for fraud vs. what the profession believes its responsibility is?