Abstract
A paper that analyzes three companies pertaining to accounting issues namely Worldcom, Enron and Adelphia.

Tags:accounting

Abstract
This paper first explains that the large number of corporate scandals over the past few years has caused many businesses to rethink the way that they monitor their operations. Next, the author examines the illegal activity of the investment company of Bernard Madoff, Aldelphia Communications, and Tyco and reveals the penalties that they now face. The paper stresses that the first step toward preventing this type of fraud from occurring again is to look at these past indiscretions.

Table of Contents:
Abstract
BMIS and Bernard Madoff
Adelphia Communication Corporation
Tyco
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Bernard Madoff is currently being accused of only one count of securities fraud. That single count, however, is for $50 billion and could lead to a 20-year prison term. Bernard and his company, Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BMIS), were discovered operating a very large-scale ponzi scheme. The victims of this fraudulent scheme include major investors such as international banks and charitable organizations. Some of the victims include Steven Spielberg's charity foundation, various owners of professional baseball and football teams, HSBC, and RBS. "

Tags:ponzi, securities fraud, internal controls, sarbanes-oxley act, larceny

Abstract
The paper begins by discussing how corporate business has been overrun with corruption, exploitation and short-term gratification, with Lehman Brothers as an example. The paper then considers the common perception of organized crime as consisting of tightly knit underworld syndicates who operate on the periphery of the legitimate business world. The paper goes on to argue that this is a misconception, and points to the 1980s Savings and Loan Scandal as the proof that organized crime operates with the knowing involvement of government officials, intelligence and military operatives, bankers and investors.
The paper further argues that the illegal and blatant behaviors of organizations like Enron, Adelphia, Worldcom and Tyco are indicative of the close relationship between corporate crime and organized crime.

From the Paper
"Such is to say that in its haphazard approach to its affairs, its exploitation of its publics and its shameless service to the greed of its core executives, Lehman Brothers would in every way reflect the philosophy which has ruled recent corporate activities; that there is a positive correlation between ethics and long-term business viability but that both are counterintuitive to the process of looting a company's coffers for personal gain. With little doubt, this is an era in corporate history which will be associated with greed and willfully ineffective stewardship. Lehman is a useful point of discussion because it encapsulates this exact reality with startling resonance to the hearings for the front office at Enron and other aforementioned corporate crooks, with CEOs pleading ignorance and demanding that Congressional committees recognize them as simply incompetent rather than criminal. However, the epidemic nature of the events of the last few years is demonstrative of the presence of a willful and criminal intent to this end, typing the concept of organized crime as closely to our corporations as to any underworld syndicate or organization."

Tags:fraud, corruption, banks, embezzlement, Lehman, Brothers

Abstract
This paper investigates if accountants truly are responsible for fraudulent claims or if they are forced by their organizations to report high profits so investors will be enticed into buying company stock. Accounting scandals at Enron, Tyco and Adelphia corporations are reviewed with special focus on the accounting practices that enabled these frauds. Accounting scandals have led the U.S. and Canadian governments to take action to make the plight of investors less risky and to hold accounting firms to the highest standards; however, the paper states, public scrutiny and stricter guidelines by the accounting profession itself more likely will truly curtail scandals, such as Enron.

From the Paper
"Off-balance-sheet deals and entities are "off" the balance sheet for a reason that such accounting is used by companies to hide things they don't want investors to see. If a company is determined to keep a significant aspect of its business off its books, investors should simply ask why. Investors rely on rating agency and many would say rely on it at your own risk. In the case of Enron they definitely fail the incompetence of one ratings agency analyst admitting to not having read the company's SEC filings, the shortcomings of an analyst-based ratings agency system became apparent in the fiasco."

Tags:credibility handbook mark-to-market off-balance-sheet, auditor independence

Abstract
This paper explains that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act came about because of the bankruptcies of Enron, Global Crossing, Adelphia, and WorldCom. These companies had hidden their true financial health from creditors and shareholders until an inability to meet financial commitments forced them to restate earnings that revealed massive losses. The author points out that a disadvantage of this Act is that the corporate sector in the United States is already sufficiently regulated, making it one of most tightly controlled in the world. The paper relates that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act restores the all-important role of the auditors as corporate "watchdogs", which is desirable for ensuring compliance with the prescribed accounting standards, and expands the role of the audit committee by making it responsible for appointing and overseeing the performance of the internal auditors.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Background
Accounting Problems that Led to Sarbanes-Oxley
Advantages of the Act
Disadvantages of the Act
Effect of the Act on the Future of Accounting Profession
Opinion

From the Paper
"One of the provisions of Sarbanes-Oxley makes the chief executive officers (CEOs) and chief financial officers (CFOs) personally responsible for signing false accounts and financial statements. They can now get stiff jail terms for violating the law by signing false and misleading financial statements. Before Sarbanes-Oxley many CEOs and CFOs pleaded innocence when financial irregularities were revealed by claiming that they were unaware of the "cooking" of the books by their subordinates."

Tags:enron, worldcom, irregularities, auditors, losses

Abstract
This paper discusses that a deterioration and lapses in ethical standards have led to the demise of some corporation. The author uses a table form to explains the findings regarding each corporations. The paper includes the corporation's status at the height of its success, its leadership, types and kinds of lapses and the effects on the corporation.

From the Paper
"The concept of business ethics is far more complex than it appears at first glance. There are many facets to corporate ethics including the company's obligation to its employees and to its stockholder, workers duties to their employer and the company's duties to regulatory agencies such as the SEC and watchdog agencies including the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency. There are also ethical duties to both related and unrelated third parties. For example, ..."

Tags:leadership, managemnet, ethical busienss behavior, enron, WorldCom, Global Crossing, Arthir Anderson, Adelphia, greeed corruption, losses to investors

Abstract
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was signed into law on July 29, 2002. It was the U.S. government's response to the questionable business practices of a number of corporate executives, which caused across-the-board declines in the value of stock in publicly-traded companies during the summer of 2002. The passage of the Act has been heralded by some as an historic occasion, some calling it a long overdue corporate reform package, while others have severely criticized the Act as an unnecessary overreaction by the government. This paper discusses the business conditions that prompted the passage of the Act, the accounting problems that made the Act necessary, the advantages and disadvantages of the Act, and the effect of the Act on the future of the accounting profession.

From the Paper
"The Corporate Sector in the United States is already sufficiently regulated. Further regulation goes against the principles of a free market economy that is one of the basic principles of the country's economy. What was needed in the wake of bankruptcy scandals was stricter enforcement of the existing laws rather than creating new ones.
The Act was a knee-jerk reaction to the accounting scandals in a tiny percentage of businesses. The new reporting requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley will divert the attentions of managements and boards of directors to self-protection away from the business purposes of companies."

Tags:Enron, Global, Crossing, Adelphia, WorldCom, SPE