Dickinson Wright Announces Successful Outcome to PCAOB Case

Dickinson Wright announced today an unprecedented and successful outcome to its aggressive constitutional challenge to the non-transparent investigative process of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”). Following notification of the PCAOB closing without action or enforcement recommendation its investigation, the attorneys dismissed its Complaint against the PCAOB, wrapping up the litigation and the investigation.

“The client comes first, and this was an extraordinary win for the client,” says Jacob Frenkel, lead counsel and Chair of Dickinson Wright’s Government Investigations & Securities Enforcement Practice. “We certainly were advancing some compelling constitutional and other legal arguments that could have altered how the PCAOB conducts its investigations. While we always want to see legal principles vindicated, what matters most is our anonymous public accounting firm client can know that the multi-year nonpublic ordeal with the PCAOB is finished with a complete victory in-hand.”

As reflected in the dismissal filed with the federal court in Houston, the PCAOB’s Division of Enforcement and Investigations:

1. Completed its investigation;
2. Determined not to recommend any enforcement action by the PCAOB including against the client public accounting firm or any of its personnel;
3. Declared the investigation is now closed;
4. Stated expressly that it will not further investigate the CPA firm’s financial-statement audit that was the subject of the investigation;
5. Withdrew its Accounting Board Demand (equivalent of a subpoena) issued in March, which the Division previously stayed; and
6. Closed the investigation based upon its investigation to date.

The Dickinson Wright team who worked tirelessly to achieve this amazing result was Partner Brooks Westergard, West Region Litigation Practice Group Chair and Partner John Nelson, Associate Charles Rice, Associate Mackenzie Robinson, and Paralegal Wendi Rosales. Dickinson Wright also expresses its gratitude for the outstanding contribution and active involvement throughout of Russ Ryan and Sheng Li with the National Civil Liberties Alliance.

To read the Stipulated Dismissal concluding the case, please click here.