Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
Rule 302
Records.
Licensees should make every attempt to resolve record request
disputes in a professional and timely manner. In cases where agreement cannot
be reached, the rules below will apply, (for purposes of the definitions below,
the term "client" includes both current and former clients).
(1)
Client-provided records are
accounting or other records belonging to the client that were provided to the
licensee, by or on behalf of, the client or former client, including hardcopy
or electronic reproductions of such records. A licensee shall return client
provided records to a client within a reasonable time after the client or
former client has made a request for those records. A reasonable time shall not
exceed 10 business days, though the Board may determine that the records must
be returned sooner in cases in which time is of the essence. The licensee shall
provide these records to the client, regardless of the status of the client's
account and cannot charge a fee to provide such records. Such records shall be
returned to the client in the same format, to the extent possible, that they
were provided to the licensee by the client. The licensee may make copies of
such records and retain those copies.
(2)
Licensee-prepared records
are accounting or other records that the licensee was not specifically
engaged to prepare and that are not in the client's books and records or are
otherwise not available to the client, with the result that the client or
former client's financial information is incomplete. Examples include
adjusting, closing, combining, or consolidating journal entries (including
computations supporting such entries) and supporting schedules and documents
that are proposed or prepared by the licensee as part of an engagement. These
records shall also be furnished to the client within a reasonable time after
the client has made a request for the records, not to exceed 20 business days.
The board may determine that the records must be returned sooner in cases in
which time is of the essence. The licensee may charge a reasonable fee for
providing such records, and the records provided should be in a format that the
client can reasonably expect to use for the purpose of accessing such work
papers. Licensees may require outstanding fees related to the engagement
involving the specific records being requested to be paid before providing
copies of licensee-prepared records to the client.
(3)
Licensee work products are
deliverables set forth in the terms of the engagement, such as tax returns or
audit reports. Work products should be provided to the client as soon as
possible, except that such work products may be withheld if:
A) there are fees due to the licensee for the
specific work product;
B) the work
product is incomplete;
C)
professional standards require withholding the work products (i.e. holding an
audit report due to outstanding audit issues) or:
D) threatened or outstanding litigation
exists concerning the engagement or licensee's work.
Licensees may charge a reasonable fee for providing copies of
work products after the originals have been provided to the client.
(4)
Licensee
working papers are items prepared solely for purposes of the engagement
and include items prepared by the licensee, such as audit programs, analytical
review schedules, and statistical sampling results and analyses, which reflect
testing or other work performed by the licensee. Working papers remain the
property of the licensee who developed the working papers and licensees are
under no obligation to provide copies to clients or other parties unless
required by law or requested by the Arkansas State Board of Public Accountancy.
It is recommended that a licensee obtain a receipt or other
written documentation of the delivery of records to a client. Licensees are not
required to convert records that are not in electronic format to electronic
format or to convert electronic records into a different type of electronic
format. However, if the client requests records in a specific format and the
records are available in such a format within the licensee's custody and
control, the client's request should be honored. In addition, the licensee is
not required to provide the client with formulas, unless the formulas support
the client's underlying accounting or other records, or the licensee was
engaged to provide such formulas as part of a completed work product.
Documentation or work documents required by professional
standards for attest services shall be maintained in paper or electronic format
by a licensee for a period of not less than five years from the date of any
report issued in connection with the attest service. Licensees must comply with
the rules and regulations of authoritative federal regulatory bodies, such as
the IRS, SEC, or PCAOB when the licensee performs services for a client and is
subject to the rules and regulations of such regulatory body. Failure to comply
with the more restrictive provisions contained in the regulations of the
applicable regulatory body will constitute a violation of this
Rule.
