.

             Often, an auditor does not even realize when their own actions have been influenced by other factors. Objectivity is a state of mind and is more often than not is hard to prove. Of critical importance is the notion of independence in fact and independence in appearance. Ultimately auditors can be independent in fact but if a reasonable investor observes all relevant facts and circumstances and concludes auditors as not being independent then the whole profession suffers. An extreme consequence that could result is if investors and other financial statement users looked elsewhere for information when they are looking to invest. This would make financial reporting useless and would ultimately lead to its demise. This demonstrates the importance of auditors remaining independent of managers and reiterates the point that investors must be able to trust and rely on the financial statements. .

             These issues directly relate to the two goals that the independence function seeks to achieve. The first goal is supply high quality audits without letting any external factors sway an auditor's judgment (objectivity). The second goal is to achieve a high level of investor confidence in the audited financial statements. The difficulty in measuring the first objective has led to more concentration and focus on the second objective. It is this decreased investor confidence that has driven the new rule requirements, because there has not been a great amount of evidence that proves there is lower quality audits being performed.

             Commission's Auditor Independence Requirements.

             The release of this new rule establishes four principles to evaluate when assessing if an auditor is independent. "An auditor will not be independent when (1) has a mutual or conflicting interest with the audit client(2) audits his or her own work (3) functions as management or an employee of the audit client, or (4) acts as an advocate for the audit client.