Companies (Audit)
(Jersey) Order 2010
THE MINISTER
FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, in pursuance of Articles 110, 112, 113E and 219 of the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 and after consultation with the Jersey Financial Services Commission,
orders as follows –
Commencement [see endnotes]
part
INTERPRETATION
1 Interpretation
In this Order –
“Law” means the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991;
“Register” means the Register of Recognized Auditors
kept by the Commission under Article 2.
part 2
register of recognized auditors
2 Commission
to keep a Register of Recognized Auditors
(1) The Commission must
keep a Register of Recognized Auditors.
(2) The Register must
contain the names of persons –
(a) who
under Article 112 of the Law are auditors qualified to be recognized
auditors; and
(b) who
have applied and have been approved by the Commission to have their names
entered on the Register.
3 Entries
on the Register
(1) An entry on the
Register in respect of a recognized auditor must contain –
(a) the
name and address of the auditor; and
(b) the
addresses of each office (whether in Jersey or elsewhere) from which the audit
of market traded companies is carried out by the auditor.
(2) An entry on the
Register in respect of a recognized auditor that is a firm must also
contain –
(a) the
name and business address of each person who is responsible to the auditor for
examining or reporting on the accounts of a market traded company pursuant to
Article 113A of the Law; and
(b) the
name of the recognized professional body each such person is a member of.
(3) An entry on the
Register in respect of a recognized auditor must also contain –
(a) if
the auditor is an individual, the name of the recognized professional body the
individual is a member of;
(b) if
the auditor is a body corporate (other than a limited liability partnership
that is a body corporate), the name and business address of each person
resident in Jersey who is a director of the body;
(c) if
the auditor is a limited liability partnership that is a body corporate, the
name and business address of each person resident in Jersey who is a member of
it; or
(d) if
the recognized auditor is a partnership, the name and business address of each
person resident in Jersey who is a partner of it.
4 Confirmation
of entries in the Register
(1) Each recognized auditor
must give to the Commission, on or shortly before each anniversary of the entry
of the name of the auditor on the Register, written confirmation that the entry
remains correct.
(2) This Article is made
under Article 110(3)(c) of the Law.
5 Form
of Register
The Commission may keep the Register in such form as the Commission
thinks appropriate, including any electronic form.
6 Register
to be made available for inspection
The Commission must make the Register available for inspection by
the public during the Commission’s normal office hours.
7 Certified
copies of entry on Register to be provided
If a person requests the Commission to do so, it must supply the
person with a copy of an entry on the Register certified by the Commission to
be a true copy of the entry.
8 Commission
may charge fees
(1) The Commission may
charge fees –
(a) for
allowing a person to inspect the Register; or
(b) for
providing a person with a certified copy of an entry on the Register.
(2) A person for whom a
duty is performed or a power is exercised as referred to in paragraph (1)
shall pay the fee charged under that paragraph.
9 Entry
on the Register may be excluded from inspection
(1) The Commission may
exclude all or part of the information in an entry on the Register relating to
an individual from being made available for inspection under Article 6 or
from being the subject of a certified copy under Article 7.
(2) The Commission may do
so if, on receiving a request from the individual, the Commission is satisfied
that making all or the relevant part (as the case requires) of the information
so available or so subject would be likely to place the individual, or any
other individual (for example, a member of the individual’s family) at
risk of harassment or intimidation.
10 Commission
may require information (where Article 113L of Law does not apply)
(1) The Commission may, by
written notice, require a person who is qualified to be a recognized auditor
and has applied to have his or her name entered on the Register (but whose name
is not yet entered on the Register) to give the Commission such information as
it may reasonably require for the exercise of its functions in relation to the
Register.
(2) The Commission may
require information given under this Article to be given in a specified form or
verified in a specified manner.
(3) Any information
required to be given under this Article must be given in writing unless the
Commission specifies or approves some other manner.
(4) This Article is made
under Article 110(3)(c) of the Law.
part 3
Rules binding recognized auditors
11 Application
of Part
This Part –
(a) applies to the rules
that an auditor must be bound by to be qualified to be a recognized auditor;
and
(b) is made under Article 112(2)
of the Law.
12 Requirements
relating to rules
(1) The rules must be
adequate to ensure that the auditor is a fit and proper person.
(2) The rules must be
adequate to prevent a person –
(a) who
is not an auditor; or
(b) if
the auditor is a firm, who is not an officer, director, partner, member or
employee of the firm,
from being able to exert influence over the way in which an audit of
a market traded company is conducted in circumstances in which that influence
would be likely to affect the independence or integrity of the audit.
(3) The rules must be adequate
to ensure that audit work carried out under Part 16 of the Law is carried
out properly and with integrity.
(4) The rules must be
adequate to ensure that an auditor is not appointed in circumstances in which
the auditor has an interest that is likely to conflict with the proper conduct
of the audit of a market traded company.
(5) The rules must
cover –
(a) the
technical standards to be applied in audit work carried out under Part 16
of the Law; and
(b) the
manner in which those standards are to be applied in practice.
(6) The rules
must –
(a) be
designed to ensure that an auditor maintains an appropriate level of
competence; and
(b) contain
provisions to ensure that, when an auditor carries out audit work, the auditor
takes any steps required to enable the performance of the work to be monitored.
(7) Any provisions of the
rules that relate to the disciplinary action that may be taken against an
auditor must be fair and reasonable and must include adequate provision for
appeals.
(8) The rules must contain
provisions designed to ensure that an auditor takes reasonable steps to be able
to meet claims arising out of audit work carried out by the auditor under Part 16
of the Law.
13 When
Commission must withdraw approval of rules
(1) This Article applies to
rules issued by a recognized professional body that have been approved by the
Commission.
(2) The Commission must
withdraw its approval of the rules if, in the absence of mitigating
circumstances, it is satisfied that the recognized professional body that
issued the rules –
(a) has
failed to comply with any obligation placed on it by an Order made under
Article 110(3) of the Law;
(b) has
ceased to have or is not using any of the arrangements or resources mentioned
in Article 112(4)(a) of the Law;
(c) has ceased
to have or is not using any of the arrangements mentioned in Article 112(4)(b)
of the Law;
(d) has
not promoted or has not maintained the standards mentioned in Article 112(4)(c)
of the Law;
(e) has
failed to cooperate in the manner mentioned in Article 112(4)(d) of the
Law;
(f) has
failed to meet the requirements of Article 112(4)(e) of the Law; or
(g) has
failed to give notification or supply information when required to do so under
Article 113K of the Law.
part 4
INDEPENDENCE requirements AS TO AUDITORS
14 Application
of Part
This Part prescribes, for the purpose of Article 113E of the
Law, the circumstances in which an auditor must not act as the auditor of a
company for the purposes of Part 16 of the Law.
15 Personal
relationships
(1) An auditor must not act
as the auditor of a company if the auditor is –
(a) an
officer or employee of the company;
(b) a
partner, or employee, of an officer or employee of the company; or
(c) a person
against whom an order under Article 78 of the Law is in force.
(2) An auditor must not act
as the auditor of a company, if –
(a) the
auditor is –
(i) an officer or
employee of a body corporate, or
(ii) a
partner, or employee, of an officer or employee of a body corporate; and
(b) the
body corporate is –
(i) a subsidiary or
holding body of the company, or
(ii) a
subsidiary of the company’s holding body.
16 Partnership
relationship
(1) An auditor that is a
partnership must not act as the auditor of a company if any of the partners of
the partnership is a person who, by virtue of Article 15, must not act as
the auditor of the company.
(2) An auditor that is a
partnership must not act as the auditor of a company if any of the partners of
the partnership is –
(a) the
company whose accounts are to be audited;
(b) a holding
body or subsidiary of that company; or
(c) a
subsidiary of any such holding body.
17 Body
corporate relationships
(1) An auditor that is a
body corporate must not act as the auditor of a company if any of the
individuals who are responsible to the auditor for examining or reporting on
the accounts of the company, or any of the shareholders or directors of the
body corporate, is a person who, by virtue of Article 15, must not act as
the auditor of the company.
(2) An auditor that is a
body corporate must not act as the auditor of a company if –
(a) the
company whose accounts are to be audited;
(b) a
holding body or subsidiary of that company; or
(c) a
subsidiary of any such holding body,
holds shares in the body corporate.
Part 5
FINAL provision
18 Citation
This Order may be cited as the Companies (Audit) (Jersey)
Order 2010.