SEC Charges Ernst & Young, Three Audit Partners, and Former Public Company CAO with Audit Independence Misconduct

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged accounting firm Ernst & Young LLP (EY), one of its partners, and two of its former partners with improper professional conduct for violating auditor independence rules in connection with EY's pursuit to serve as the independent auditor for a public company with nearly $5 billion in revenue (issuer). Separately, the Commission brought charges against the Issuer's then-Chief Accounting Officer for his role in the misconduct. All respondents have agreed to settle the charges and will collectively pay more than $10 million in monetary relief. The SEC's order against the auditors finds that EY, EY partner James Herring, CPA, and former EY partners, James Young, CPA and Curt Fochtmann, CPA improperly interfered with the issuer's selection of an independent auditor by soliciting and receiving confidential competitive intelligence and confidential audit committee information from the issuer's then-Chief Accounting Officer, William Stiehl, during the request…