...David B. Bryan; Terry W. Mason SYNOPSIS This study proposes that auditors incorporate earnings volatility into their risk assessments such that volatility is associated with auditor resignations. Because volatile earnings are less predictable, they create larger deviations from the auditor's...

... will notice and incorporate media-provided ESG information in their risk response, which has not been examined by prior research. Supporting this prediction, we find that ESG-related negative media coverage of an audit client is associated with a higher likelihood of auditor resignation and increased audit...

... filings are associated with an auditor resignation (e.g., DeFond et al. 1997 ; Lee et al. 2004 ). Examples of these high-risk comments include: disagreements between client and auditor, the auditor's inability to rely on management's representations, questionable accounting practices, internal control...