Revisors oberoende

Sammanfattning: The main purpose of this study is to examine the Swedish regulations concerning auditors’ independence. In the study three questions are analysed. The first question concerns the function of the independence requirements. The basic thesis is that the regulations on independence are a part of the system securing the quality of the statutory auditors’ work. Therefore, it can be presumed that the purpose of the independence requirements is to secure the function of the audit requirements. Thus, by examining the function of the statutory audit, the purpose of the independence requirements can be established.The second question is what different kinds of threats to the auditors’ independence that may typically occur. The study is based on the conclusions concerning the purpose of the independence requirements. Two main categories of threats are identified. The first one occurs when the auditor has a too close relationship with the audit client or someone else who has a direct economical interest in the auditor’s work when performing the audit. The second type of threat is general in the meaning that the threat is related to the good reputation of the audit profession. The purpose of the study is to establish a basis for regulating the auditor’s independence.The last question to be answered is how the Swedish regulations concerning auditors’ independence are constructed. In this part of the study the regulations on independence of the 2001 Swedish Auditors Act (revisorslagen) are examined. Special attention will be paid to the so called self-review threat.