Accountants along with the corporations should avoid actual or apparent conflicts of interest and advise all appropriate parties of any potential conflict. They should refrain in engaging in any activity that would prejudice their ability to carry out their duties ethically. Accountants, especially auditors, must refuse any gift, favor, or hospitality that would influence, or would appear to influence their actions. They should recognize and communicate professional limitations or other constraints that would preclude responsible judgment or successful performance of an activity. They must be able to communicate unfavorable as well as favorable information and professional judgments or opinions.
They should refrain from engaging in or supporting any activity that would discredit the profession. Accountants and the management of the organization have a responsibility to communicate information fairly and objectively. Disclose fully all-relevant Information that could reasonably be expected to influence an intended user's understanding of the reports, comments, and recommendations presented is another responsibility accountants must adhere to.
Good ethics does not always translate into good business, but over time people do understand how the organization does business. A good ethics program would enable them to distinguish between the ethical, and the merely legal. Asking whether something is legal is only the first step in determining whether it is ethical. In fact, making an activity illegal may often be society's way of endorsing its much earlier decision about what is unethical. At some point in life, ethics must be taught. People are not born with innate desires to be ethical or to be concerned with the welfare ...