Purpose of the Aicpa Code of Professional Conduct
Week One Ethics Paper In my document I will be describing the purpose of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct and why it is considered the foundation of ethical reasoning in accounting. As well as answer the following questions: What do you think are the three most important principles of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct? And, why are those three the most important? The Principles of the AICPA Code are aspirational statements that form the foundation for the Code’s enforceable rules. The Principles guide members in the performance of their professional responsibilities and call for an unyielding commitment to honor the public trust, even at the sacrifice of personal benefits. While CPAs cannot be legally held to the Principles, they do represent the expectations for CPAs on the part of the public in the performance of professional services. In this regard, the Principles are based on values of the profession and traits of character (virtues) that enable CPAs to meet their obligations to the public. The Principles include (1) Responsibilities; (2) The Public Interest; (3) Integrity; (4) Objectivity and Independence; (5) Due Care; and (6) Scope and Nature of Services. The umbrella statement in the Code is that the overriding responsibility of CPAs is to exercise sensitive professional and moral judgments in all activities. By linking professional conduct to moral judgment, the AICPA Code recognizes the importance of moral reasoning in meeting professional obligations. That, in turn, automatically increases the importance of the AICPA code in general. (Steven M. Mintz DBA, CPA, Roselyn E. Morris PhD, CPA. Ethical Obligations and Decision Making in Accounting, © 2011 McGraw-Hill Company) I think the three most important principles of the AICPA code are: Responsibilities, The Public Interest, and Objectivity and Independence. I think if you specialize in those three principles, then that will allow you to include the remaining three with