注册会计师法律责任研究

【作者】 朱湘萍；

【导师】 蔡春；

【作者基本信息】 西南财经大学 ， 会计学， 2001， 硕士

【摘要】 全文共分四个部分：第一部分探讨在研究注册会计师法律责任时必须涉及到的诸如责任、审计职业责任、审计法律责任、受托经济责任、审计关系、审计法律关系等基础问题。审计与受托经济责任之间有着密切的联系。受托经济责任关系是审计行为活动存在的首要前提。审计责任就是审计人员应履行的职业责任和未履行职业责任或因失职触犯法律而应负的法律责任。审计职业责任的发生是必然的，审计法律责任的发生则是或然的。未尽职业责任是导致承担法律责任的重要原因，法律责任是促使注册会计师有效履行职业责任的社会强制。鉴于审计与受托经济责任的密切关系，笔者探讨了在受托经济责任的变化发展过程中，审计关系与审计责任的变化发展过程。随着受托经济责任范围的扩大，审计责任日益加强，审计关系人涉及面更广。审计关系人之间的审计关系的产生决定了审计主体对审计客体责任的产生，同时也构成了审计法律关系的基本内容。审计关系由审计法律、法规调整时，就为审计法律关系。审计法律关系是以审计关系人之间的权利和义务为内容的社会关系。 第二部分探讨注册会计师法律责任体系中的诸如注册会计师法律责任的主体、客体、注册会计师民事法律责任的归责原则、构成要件及抗辩方法等五个基本问题。 会计师事务所和注册会计师是法律责任的主体，审计相关方在特定条件下也会成为审计法律责任的主体。其责任形式有行政责任、民事责任、刑事责任三种。目前，我国会计师事务所的组织形式主要有两种：有限责任制会计师事务所和合伙制会计师事务所。合伙制会计师事务所因其合伙人对事务所的债务承担无限连带责任的严格责任形式，将成为会计师事务所的主要形式。近年来，为了充分体现中介机构对社会所应承担的责任，同时又合理地保护合伙人权益，国际上出现了有限责任合伙制这一组织形式。它是事务所组织形式上的创新和有益尝试。注册会计师法律责任客体中最棘手的问题是对第三者范 围及其责任界定的问题。注册会计师民事法律责任中最重要的问题是 归责原则问题。根据我国的国情，笔者认为，应主要适用过错责任原 则。注册会计师民事法律责任的构成要件包括损害行为、损害事实、 注册会计师在执业中存在主观过错行为、导致的损失与所依赖的己审 会计报表有因果关系四个方面。注册会计师可以在不具备上述四个构 成要件之一的条件下进行抗辩。 第三部分：首先简要介绍了中、美两国注册会计师法律责任的发 展过程，并就其相同之处、不同之处进行了比较，得出了一些有益的 启示。然后探讨了随着民间审计职业的不断发展，在新的社会政治、 经济环境条件下，注册会计师承担法律责任的理论依据，寻找注册会 计师承担法律责任的主、客观原因二 笔者将美国注册会计师法律贡任的发展过程划分为三个阶段。第 一阶段，1748年七0世纪20年代，审计法律责任的酝酿阶段；第二阶 段，20世纪20年代卡0年代，审计法律责任的初步发展阶段；第三阶 段，20世纪60年代－至今，审计法律责任进一步发展阶段。审计法律“ 责任在三个阶段分别表现出不同的特征。 ”笔者赞同李若山博士对我国注册会计师法律贡任发展过程的划 分方法。认为我国注册会计师法律责任的发展过程也可以划分为三个 阶段。第一阶段，1981年l 年，这是中国注册会计师法律贡任的 酝酿阶段；第二阶段门992年l995年，这是中国注册会计师法律责 任的萌芽阶段；第三阶段，1996年－至今，是注册会计师法律责任的 纵深发展阶段。 在第一阶段里，我国审计理论界和实务界对审计责任缺乏足够的 认识＊992年的原野事件和1993年的中诚伪证案及海南新华案使审计 职业界认识到自己负担的法律责任和职业自我管理的必要性。《注册 会计师法》和《独立审计准则》等有关法律文件及行业规范的颁布和 实施使审计业务操作规范化，明确了注册会计师的法律责任，对审计 职业发展起了巨大推动作用，它同时也标志着我国对审计责任的认识 更进了一步。 通过对中、美两国注册会计师法律责任发展过程的比较，笔者认 2 为：两国注册会计师法律贡任发展过程有相同之处，也有不同之处。 相同之处表明：两国对注册会计师法律责任的认识、法律规范及司法 判定都经历了一个较松一较严一逐步合理的发展过程。在这一发展过 程中对“第三者”责任对象的宽窄界定较为棘手，同时，两国注册会 计师法律责任的发展历程表明：关于注册会计师法律责任的司法实践 是推动注册会计师职业界乃至社会公众正确、合理认识注册会i！帅法 律责任问题的原动力。不同方面，主要体现为我国与美国相比，在审 计责任理论和实践发展。法律法规的健全和?更多还原

【Abstract】 This thesis consists of four chapters. The first chapter deals with the basic issues such as responsibilities, auditing responsibilities, accoUntability, auditing relations, legal relations of auditing and so on, which must be referred to in the researching legal liabilities of CPAs. The author classifies auditing responsibilities into professional responsibility and legal liabilities. And also the author considers that the reason appearance of the professional responsibility is certain while the other is not, which is one major that causes CPAs and CPA firms to shoulder legal liabilities because of their failure to perform professional responsibility properly. The legal liabilities is the social force urging CPAs to perform their professional responsibility effectively. Considering the close relationship between auditing and accountability, the author approaches the development of auditing relations and auditing responsibility during that of accountability. With accountability抯 expansion, the auditing responsibility is increasingly strengthened and the auditing relations determine that of auditing subject抯 responsibility to auditing objects, meanwhile they form the basic content of auditing legal relations. Auditing legal relation is a kind of social relation which is stipulated and regulated by auditing laws and regulations and consists of rights and obligations of parties concerning auditing. The second chapter concentrates on the five basic issues in CPAs?legal liability system which includes subjects and objects of CPAs?legal liabilities doctrine of liability fixation constitutive elements and deference method. CPA firms and CPAs are the main subjects of auditing legal liabilities and under some particular cases, the auditing parties concerned may also become subjects. There exists three forms in CPAs?legal liabilities: administrative, civil and criminal liabilities. Nowadays there are two kinds of CPA firms: limited and partnership firms. The latter is more popular because the partners have unlimited joint liability for the firms?debts. Recently, in order to adequately reflect intermediaries?responsibilities to the society and at the same time to reasonably protect partners?interests, a new organization form called limited partnership firm in foreign countries appears, which is creative and beneficial attempt. The most difficult problem in handling CPAs?legal liabilities?objects is how to identify the third party and liability scope of it. And the most important problem of CPAs?civil liabilities is that of doctrine of liability fixation. According to the situation in our country, the author believes, the malpractice principle should be applied in tackling this kind of lawsuits. Harmful behaviors, harmful facts, subjective faults in practice, cause and effect relations between damage and the audited financial statements, which are relied by somebody to make some decisions, are the four necessary factors for CPAs to accept civil liabilities, otherwise CPAs concerned can protest. In the third chapter, having briefly introduced the development process of CPAs? legal liabilities both in America and in China, the author comparatively studied the situation in the two countries and arrived at some beneficial enlightenments. Then the author discusses the theoretical basis of CPAs?legal liabilities and subjective and objective causes which have made CPAs to shoulder legal liabilities in modern ~ocial, political and economic environment. The author divide更多还原