Court of Appeal upholds privilege challenge in audit investigation

Viewpoints
February 27, 2020
1 minutes

The past week has provided an illustration of the types of challenges the FRC and its successor body (the proposed Audit Reporting and Governance Authority or ARGA) may face increasingly frequently when exercising investigatory and enforcement powers. 

In a judgment handed down last week, the Court of Appeal upheld a company’s challenge to a notice issued by the FRC purporting to compel auditors to produce certain documents. Specifically, the Court confirmed that documents covered by legal advice privilege were not required to be produced, whether the privilege belonged to the auditor or the audited entity.