Florida Statute 473.315 - Full Text and Legal Analysis

The 2025 Florida Statutes

Title XXXII
REGULATION OF PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS

Chapter 473
PUBLIC ACCOUNTANCY

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473.315 Independence, technical standards.—

(1) A certified public accountant shall not express an opinion on the financial statements of an enterprise unless she or he and her or his firm are independent with respect to such enterprise.

(2) A certified public accountant shall not undertake any engagement in the practice of public accounting which she or he or her or his firm cannot reasonably expect to complete with professional competence.

(3) The board shall adopt rules establishing the standards of practice of public accounting, including, but not limited to, independence, competence, and technical standards.

(4) Attorneys who are admitted to practice law by the Supreme Court of Florida are exempt from the standards of practice of public accounting as defined in s. 473.302(8)(b) and (c) when such standards conflict with the rules of The Florida Bar or orders of the Florida Supreme Court.

History.—ss. 14, 25, ch. 79-202; ss. 2, 3, ch. 81-318; ss. 10, 11, ch. 85-9; s. 4, ch. 91-429; s. 349, ch. 97-103; s. 9, ch. 98-340; s. 107, ch. 2010-5.

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Amendments to 473.315

Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases Citing Statute 473.315

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Fane v. Edenfield, 945 F.2d 1514 (11th Cir. 1991).

Cited 8 times | Published | Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | 1991 U.S. App. LEXIS 25553

...Regulatory requirements exist in Florida that can be utilized to preserve the independence of CPAs who perform the attest function. The Board does not offer any explanation as to why those requirements do not adequately afford the protection which it seeks. First and foremost, Fla.Stat.Ann. § 473.315(1) (West 1991) prohibits a CPA from expressing "an opinion on the financial statements of an enterprise unless he and his firm are independent with respect to such enterprise." Second, CPAs are forbidden from engaging in any kind of fraudulent or deceptive conduct....

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Fane v. Edenfield, 945 F.2d 1514 (11th Cir. 1991).

Published | Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | 1991 WL 205244

...Regulatory requirements exist in Florida that can be utilized *1519 to preserve the independence of CPAs who perform the attest function. The Board does not offer any explanation as to why those requirements do not adequately afford the protection which it seeks. First and foremost, Fla.Stat.Ann. § 473.315(1) (West 1991) prohibits a CPA from expressing “an opinion on the financial statements of an enterprise unless he and his firm are independent with respect to such enterprise.” Second, CPAs are forbidden from engaging in any kind of fraudulent or deceptive conduct....

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