Implications of Divided Responsibility in Audits Auditors

This article summarizes and reflects on the practical implications of the published study "Are Referred-To Auditors Associated with Lower Quality and Efficiency?" (Krishnan and Li 2023). Audits of companies frequently involve the participation of auditors (who audit components of clients) other than the lead auditor that signs the audit report. In general, the work of these component auditors is assimilated in the lead auditor's report. However, uniquely in the United States, the lead auditor sometimes formally divides responsibility with the component auditor and refers to the component auditor's work in its audit report. These component auditors are "referred-to" auditors. Krishnan and Li (2023) examine factors associated with the use of referred-to auditors as well as the associations between the use of referred-to auditors and measures of audit quality and audit efficiency.