Page:Accountants Act 2004.pdf/23

Rh (3) Any person who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000.

Effect of company becoming accounting corporation

23.—(1) An accounting corporation is authorised to do anything that a public accountant can do by law and is required to do all that a public accountant is required to do by law.

(2) Subsection (1) shall not apply to the doing of anything that can only be done by a public accountant as a natural person.

(3) A public accountant who provides public accountancy services as a director or an employee of an accounting corporation shall be subject to the same standards of professional conduct and competence in respect of such services as if he were personally providing the public accountancy services as a public accountant in an accounting firm.

(4) The mere fact that a public accountant personally provides public accountancy services as a director or an employee of an accounting corporation shall not affect the personal liability of that public accountant at law.

Relationship between accounting corporation and client

24. An accounting corporation shall have the same rights and shall be subject to the same fiduciary, confidential and ethical requirements with respect to each client of the accounting corporation that exist at law with respect to a public accountant and his client.

Professional misconduct

25.—(1) An act or omission of a public accountant may constitute improper or dishonourable conduct in the discharge of his professional duty even though it is only done or occurs while the public accountant provides public accountancy services through an accounting corporation or an accounting firm.

(2) The directors of an accounting corporation or the partners of an accounting firm who are public accountants shall be jointly liable to disciplinary proceedings under this Act if the business of the accounting corporation or accounting firm is conducted in a manner which would warrant disciplinary proceedings against it and where such conduct cannot