E&Y fails to halt Anglo Irish investigation
A judicial review application from the Big Four firm to halt an investigation into its auditing of a failed Irish bank has been thrown out
ERNST & YOUNG in Ireland has failed in a bid to halt an investigation into its work as auditor of Anglo Irish Bank.
The High Court in Ireland ruled on Friday that the firm had no grounds for a judicial review of a probe ordered by the country’s Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board (CARB).
According to a report in the Irish Independent, the firm claimed in its application that the probe was unfair because reports leading to the investigation did not contain valid “complaints”. This was because they failed to detail specific allegations or refer to any “codes of conduct, rules, regulations and professional standards”.
The Irish Independent reports the firm is “disappointed” with the decision and quotes a statement from Ernst & Young saying it has “no issue” with participating in any investigation into its work and that it has “co-operated fully” with the investigation so far.
The investigation is being undertaken by John Purcell, a former comptroller and auditor general in Ireland. He was appointed to probe E&Y’s audit work at the bank in March 2009. CARB is a body of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.