Question: Various Completion Matters. For each of the following independent situations, describe the most appropriate course of action that the auditors should take.
a. Drew Allison is conducting the audit of Anderson Inc. as of December 31, 2014. At the beginning of the evidence gathering, Allison becomes aware that one of Anderson's major customers (Jones) is experiencing significant financial difficulties. Jones normally accounts for 5 percent of Anderson's net sales. After performing the necessary procedures, Allison believes that $2.8 million of Jones's receivable balance will ultimately become uncollectible. Allison further believes this amount is material to Anderson's financial condition and results of operations.
b. Nagan Carmelo is completing the December 31, 2014, audit of Nugget Company. As part of the final procedures, Carmelo has requested representations from Nugget's management regarding their assertion as to the fairness of the financial statements and other important matters addressed by professional standards. Because Nugget's management is attending an analyst briefing in the upcoming week, Carmelo receives these signed representations dated February 6, 2015. Carmelo has a few remaining items to complete, does so, and dates the auditor's report February 9, 2015.
c. Pat Colt completed the December 31, 2014, audit of Manning and issued an unmodified opinion on Manning's financial statements dated March 15, 2015. Colt's opinion was released, along with Manning's financial statements, on March 21, 2015. During a review of Manning's first quarter 10-Q in late April, Colt became aware of the company's settlement with a customer over a product warranty lawsuit; this case had been settled on March 13, 2015. Although Colt had received the necessary letter from Manning's attorneys, the letter arrived prior to the settlement of the case and did not mention this development. After reviewing the information related to the settlement, Colt does not believe that the settlement is material to Manning's financial condition or results of operations and believes the opinion on Manning's financial statements is still supportable.
d. Cameron Alta completed the December 31, 2014, audit of Saxe Company on February 10, 2015. Saxe is planning to release its financial statements, along with Alta's opinion on these financial statements and internal control over financial reporting, on February 17, 2015. On February 12, 2015, a flood in one of Saxe's warehouses located in the Gulf Coast region destroyed more than $10 million of inventory. Although the extent to which this loss is recoverable through Saxe's insurance is uncertain at this time, Alta believes that this loss could have a material impact on Saxe's financial condition and results of operations.
e. During the audit of Glomco, Angel Myron identified a number of misstatements. These misstatements are not material in dollar amount, do not appear to represent any discernable pattern, and do not represent fraudulent activity. As a result, Myron has decided that Glomco's financial statements do not need to be adjusted to reflect the effect of these misstatements.
f. Following the completion of the 2014 audit of Blankenship Corporation and release of the financial statements and auditor's reports, Reese Jill met with the manager on the engagement to conduct a postmortem on the engagement and identify how changes in Blankenship's operations noted during the most recent audit may affect future audits. During this review, Jill became aware that Blankenship's process for evaluating goodwill related to an acquisition made by Blankenship during the most recent year for potential impairment had not been considered. Jill believes that the omitted procedure is important in supporting the opinion on Blankenship's financial statements and that users continue to rely on the financial statements and the auditor's reports.