Companies Act 2014

F576[Sanctions which Supervisory Authority may impose on statutory auditor for relevant contravention

934C

934C. (1) This section applies to a specified person the subject of a decision under section 934(9) that the person has committed a relevant contravention.

(2) Subject to section 934D, the Supervisory Authority may impose on the specified person one or more of the following sanctions in relation to the relevant contravention:

(a) a direction by the Supervisory Authority to the specified person that he or she cease the conduct giving rise (whether in whole or in part) to the contravention and to abstain from any repetition of that conduct;

(b) a direction by the Supervisory Authority to the specified person to remediate the conduct giving rise (whether in whole or in part) to the contravention;

(c) a reprimand or severe reprimand by the Supervisory Authority to the specified person in relation to the conduct giving rise (whether in whole or in part) to the contravention;

(d) a declaration by the Supervisory Authority that the statutory auditors report concerned does not meet the requirements of section 336 or 337 or, where applicable, Article 10 of Regulation (EU) No 537/2014;

(e) a direction by the Supervisory Authority to the specified person (being any one or more of a statutory auditor or key audit partner (within the meaning of Part 27)) prohibiting him or her, for the period specified in the direction (which may be up to and including an indefinite period), from carrying out statutory audits or signing statutory auditors reports, or both;

(f) if the specified person is an audit firm, a direction by the Supervisory Authority to the firm, or to an officer, member or partner of the firm, or to both, prohibiting the firm or, as the case may be, the officer, member or partner, for the period specified in the direction (which may be up to and including an indefinite period) from performing functions

(i) in the case of the firm, as an audit firm, or

(ii) in the case of the officer, member or partner, in audit firms or public-interest entities;

(g) subject to section 934G, a direction by the Supervisory Authority to the specified person to pay an amount, as specified in the direction but not exceeding

(i) 100,000 in the case of a specified person who is an individual, or

(ii) in the case of a specified person which is an audit firm, 100,000 multiplied by the number of statutory auditors in the firm at the time that the relevant contravention occurred (and irrespective of whether any particular statutory auditor was or was not a party to the relevant contravention),

to the Supervisory Authority;

(h) an order excluding the specified person from having his or her particulars entered, or continuing to be entered, in the public register (within the meaning of Part 27) in respect of one or more recognised accountancy bodies.

(3) In default of payment of an amount referred to in subsection (2)(g), the Supervisory Authority may recover that amount as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(4) A person the subject of a direction under subsection (2) shall comply with the direction.

(5) Where applicable, the Supervisory Authority shall direct the recognised accountancy body of which the specified person is a member to take any necessary action on foot of the imposition of a relevant sanction on the person and that body shall comply with the direction.

(6) The Supervisory Authority shall, as soon as is practicable after imposing a relevant sanction on a specified person, notify the recognised accountancy body of which the specified person is a member of the imposition of the sanction together with such particulars of the person, the relevant contravention concerned and the sanction as the Supervisory Authority considers appropriate.]

Annotations

Amendments:

F576

Inserted (21.09.2018) by Companies (Statutory Audits) Act 2018 (22/2018), s. 35, S.I. No. 366 of 2018.