Page:The Ethics of the Professions and of Business, with a supplement - Modern China and Her Present Day Problems.djvu/212

 {{c|Ethics of Accountancy

By Edward P. Moxey, Jr., Ph.D., C.P.A.

Professor of Accounting, University of Pennsylvania

THE subject of ethics for the ac- countant is one which has en- gaged the attention of the members of that profession for quite a number of years. In fact, the subject was one of those presented before the Congress of Accountants, meeting at St. Louis in September, 1904. Prior to that time, however, definite rules of pro- fessional conduct had been formulated by the accounting societies of England for their members. In this connection it is interesting to note that in the latter part of 1905 a bill was introduced into Parliament by the Government of Tasmania for the regulation of the profession of accountancy in that colony. This bill made mention spe- cifically of certain actions on the part of accountants which were to be re- garded as unprofessional, and the practice of which should render them liable to fine, suspension or expulsion.

At the Convention of the American Association of Public Accountants, held at St. Paul, Minnesota, in Octo- ber, 1907, Mr. J. E. Sterrett, C.P.A., presented a paper on "Professional Ethics " which is the standard treatise on that subject today. This paper was characterized at that time by Mr. Robert H. Montgomery, C.P.A., as one "which bids fair to become a classic," and this prophecy has indeed been amply fulfilled. Mr. Sterrett called attention to the fact that the older professions of law and medicine had even at that time (1907) made considerable progress in the develop- ment of systems of professional ethics, and called attention also to the work being accomplished along that line by the American Institute of Electrical Engineers. In measuring the distinc- tion between the accountant as a mem- ber of one of the newer professions, as contrasted with the lawyer or physi- cian, Mr. Sterrett stated:

{{quote|A lawyer's real opinion of another lawyer, or that of one physician concerning another, is usually a much more accurate judgment of the man's character and ability than is indicated by the reputation which he bears in the community at large. It may be that the opinion of the public and that of those who know the man from the inside, as it were, will coincide. This is likely to be the case with men of good ability and fine character, but the sham and the trickster are likely to be weighed and labeled by their professional brethren long before their real character is discovered by outsiders.

Under ordinary circumstances regard for the good name of his profession seals the lips of the professional man about matters concerning others in his own profession. The physician considers it quite unethical to pass harsh judgment upon his brother physician, except under the most urgent conditions. As account- ants endeavoring to build up professional ideals, we should feel that the good name of our profession requires us to avoid all needless reference to the weaknesses or imperfections of other accountants. }}

While since that time there have been more or less serious infringements of the rules of ethics as laid down for the guidance of accountants, yet these have been dealt with fairly and im- partially by committees on professional conduct of the American Association of Public Accountants and of its successor, the American Institute of Accountants. The work of these committees has always tended to-