PCAOB Closes First Discipline Case of 2011
The PCAOB barred James Crane from being an associated person of an accounting firm and revoked his firm’s registration for several violations of PCAOB rules including failure to cooperate with PCAOB inspections.
The PCAOB said Crane, formerly a Massachusetts resident who is now residing in China, was licensed in Massachusetts as a CPA until that license expired on June 30, 2010.
The troubles first began with Crane when the PCAOB tried to schedule an inspection for early 2010. PCAOB staff communicated with Crane between Nov. 19, 2009 and Dec. 4, 2009 about scheduling his inspection.
On Dec. 4, 2009, Crane spoke with an inspections staff member about the upcoming inspection, and five days later he requested the inspection be scheduled for mid-February 2010 or later, according to the PCAOB.
The PCAOB originally intended to inspect Crane’s firm Mar. 15, 2010, but he never sent the completed Issuer Information Form to Inspections so the inspection had to be rescheduled. On May 11, 2010, Crane requested that the inspection be rescheduled for a period between July 17, 2010, and Aug. 13, 2010. Once again the PCAOB accommodated Crane and rescheduled.
On May 18, 2010, Inspections notified Crane that it had rescheduled the inspection for July 26, 2010.
Because Crane never provided the Issuer Information Form, the completed
Data Request Form, or the selected engagement records to the PCAOB
Inspections could not begin the inspection on July 26, 2010, as planned. In fact it probably did not matter when subsequent inspections would have been slated for as the materials have still not been provided to Inspections, according to the PCAOB.
While the lack of issuer and requested inspection data from Crane may not have made the PCAOB happy, Crane apparently wasn’t going to let it get him down as he continued to perform audits including one dated July 14 for Left Behind Games.
With all the troubles Inspections was having with Crane, it probably shouldn’t come as any surprise he then failed to file an annual or report or pay his annual fee to the PCAOB.
The annual report was due June 30 and the annual fee was due July 31. In keeping with his behavior in respect to inspections, he failed to adhere to either deadline.
The PCAOB permanently revoked his firm registration and permanently barred him from being an associated person of an accounting firm.
This story was published in the January 28, 2011 issue of Accounting News Report
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