Regulation

It is a fact that, throughout Europe and indeed the world, financial reporting is governed by rules which prescribe, in varying degrees of detail, the form and content of financial statements. This chapter and the following chapter consider these rules, not so much their content, but rather the nature of the rules themselves, the authority attached to the rules and the bodies that issue them — the rule-makers. Within Europe, there is great diversity in these matters. The rules that govern financial reporting range from laws, enacted by the state, which must be obeyed under threat of sanctions imposed by the courts, to recommendations issued by professional associations. Even though such recommendations may not be backed by any formal authority and have only persuasive force, they are nevertheless relevant, if they are followed in practice and have thus have become a form of self-imposed rule. Before considering these rules in more detail, it is proposed first to consider the question: ‘Why, in financial reporting, are rules necessary or desirable?’.