Sarbanes Oxley

According to an unsubstantiated rumor, PricewaterhouseCoopers (the largest of the Big 4 accounting firms) has sent one of three letters to the boards of directors of their audit clients with December year-ends. The first says that the company is likely to pass its tests of internal controls; the second that the company could maybe pass if they bust their humps; the third is that they are unlikely to get a clean opinion. The unsubstantiated rumor also has it that as many as one-third of their clients are getting letter number 3 and are truly, deeply unhappy about it. I will be happy to retract this post as the occasion requires, since my source could be blowing more smoke than Pittsburgh in its heyday. We should know shortly.