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Client concerns about information spillovers from sharing audit partners

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  • Kang, Jung Koo
  • Lennox, Clive
  • Pandey, Vivek

Abstract

We hypothesize that companies in the same product market avoid sharing the same audit partner when they are concerned about possible information spillovers. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that product market rivals are less likely to share the same partner when they perceive that information spillovers are more costly. While concerns about information spillovers significantly reduce the likelihood of product market rivals sharing the same audit partner, we find that such concerns do not deter them from sharing the same audit office. Lastly, when companies are unconcerned with information spillovers, our results suggest that partner sharing can be beneficial because it can result in lower audit fees and fewer accounting misstatements.

Suggested Citation

  • Kang, Jung Koo & Lennox, Clive & Pandey, Vivek, 2022. "Client concerns about information spillovers from sharing audit partners," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(1).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jaecon:v:73:y:2022:i:1:s0165410121000495
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jacceco.2021.101434
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Hu, Zhiying & Yang, Haiyan & Zhang, Yuyu, 2022. "Shared auditors, social trust, and relationship-specific investment in the supply chain," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(3).
    2. Kang, Jung Koo, 2024. "Gone with the big data: Institutional lender demand for private information," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(2).
    3. Bedford, Anna & Bugeja, Martin & Czernkowski, Robert & Bond, David, 2023. "Is the effect of shared auditors driven by shared audit partners? The case of M&As," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(2).

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