International Journal of Critical Accounting (4 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• A Competition of Crooked Deeds  
  by Rita Koyame-Marsh 
  Abstract: The poem focuses on fraud and corruption in the global market of sports. It shows the pervasive state of payment of bribes, money laundering, and accounting fraud. All parties involved seem to be motivated by greed and lack of business ethics. The global nature of the criminal activities is unsettling. A reform of the internal management process is necessary in addition to the institution of an external third party monitoring system.
  Keywords: Corruption; Accounting Fraud; bribes; sport management; international sport.
  
  
• Wells Fargo and Company: Shareholder Derivative Action Should the Case Succeed in Federal Court for the Board of Directors?  
  by Murray Bryant, Throstur Olaf Sigurjonsson 
  Abstract: A shareholder derivative suit is an action allowed by the courts available for shareholders who believe that they have been harmed by actions of the board of directors and management. In most instances, particularly in the US state of Delaware, the actions are not allowed to proceed. The rationale being that the business judgment rule applies and as a consequence boards of directors are not held responsible for bad decisions and as a result, the business judgment is held to be supreme. Thus they are presumed to act with diligence, without self-interest and in the best interests of the corporation. In the case of the action against Wells Fargo and Company, Judge Tigar of the Northern District of California, has allowed the action to go ahead, on the basis that the directors had been negligent on multiple actions with respect to several proceedings by Federal Agencies against the bank and furthermore that the directors failed to hold senior management to account when concerns were raised from several sources about malfeasance occurring in the bank. The paper suggests the arguments both for the plaintiffs and the defendants in the case.
  Keywords: Business judgment rule; responsibility of boards of directors; shareholder derivative action; malfeasance; fraud; multiple firings; judicial hearing; strategy and performance measurement systems.
  
  
• Giving contingency theory of management accounting and control a critical edge  
  by Umesh Sharma 
  Abstract: This paper describes the background of contingency theory and some of its research findings, and offers a critique. There are problems with contingency theory, ranging from a simple lack of clarity in its theoretical statements to subtle issues such as its reliance on a statistical model to show interactions between organisational structure and its impacting variables. The paper examines contingency theory from functionalist perspectives and identifies shortcomings of the theory. It is suggested that the narrow view of contingency theory that relies on responses to generally applicable questionnaire needs to be replaced by an approach that takes into consideration the context of specific organisations.
  Keywords: contingency theory; management accounting; critical accounting; technology; organisation size; environmental uncertainty .
  
  
• Accounting Reporting Standards: Attitudes Toward Cash Flow Reporting and the Impact on Share Price  
  by Donna Whitten, Tantatape Brahmasrene 
  Abstract: This study explores the attitudes of accounting reporting standard-setters towards cash flows and the impact on cash flow per share (CFPS) on share price. Included are companies headquartered in the U.S., where Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP) is adhered to and reporting CFPS is prohibited, and Canada, where International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) has been adopted and companies are free to report CFPS. The results indicate differences exist. First, the firms country where headquartered is highly significant in determining share price. Next, for companies based in the U.S. regardless of whether EPS was positive or negative, CFPS was significant, but not so for firms based in Canada. Conversely, CFPS is significant for companies based in the U.S. only when EPS is positive, yet for those firms that are headquartered in Canada, CFPS is highly significant whether EPS is positive or negative.
  Keywords: U.S. GAAP; IFRS; share price; diluted earnings; EPS; book value; dividends; cash flow per share.