External resources include:

  1. Professionals outside of the firm.
  2. Written standards, rules, interpretations, and guidance that are published by external bodies.

When, as part of an attest engagement, we involve professionals outside of the firm, we ensure that they meet the requirements of independence, ethics, objectivity, competence, due care, and professionalism. However, for resources named in the firm manual, this assessment is not necessary at the engagement level.

We use the AICPA library resources of professional, regulatory, and firm literature relating to independence matters. The AICPA Ethics Tools and Aids, including the Plain English Guide to Independence, can be found at https://pub.aicpa.org/codeofconduct/Ethics.aspx.

Another important external resource consists of hotlines provided by AICPA and FASB:

fasb.org

AICPA Technical Hotline

For Peer Reviewers

Peer Review Links

CPEA Technical Inquiries

Our recommended resource for quality review and consultations:

Network Firm

Guidance