Texts: Apple's external auditors have been busy auditing the financial statements of Orange Inc., a supplier of fresh orange and apple juice across the Midwestern United States. Throughout the course of the engagement, the auditors have observed that Orange Inc. appears to be drastically understaffed in the accounting department. As a result, in order to ensure that the audit is completed on budget and on time, several junior staff members assigned to the audit have been helping out with basic accounting tasks such as inputting journal entries and preparing sales orders and bills of lading. During a recent discussion between the two partners assigned to the engagement, this issue has come up and is being discussed. The discussion between the two partners is likely to center around which of the following?
A. Whether or not Apple auditors can charge Orange Inc. more money as a result of the extra work the auditing firm staff are now having to perform, and if so, how best to include these extra fees as part of the cost of the audit.
B. Whether the partners should consider meeting with the client's top management to discuss further opportunities for the auditor's staff to assist the client in meeting deadlines and performing all functions necessary to ensure the audit is completed in a timely manner.
C. Whether or not a potential impairment to independence may exist because of the auditing staff's involvement with the client's accounting function, and how this could be construed by the public at large.
D. That the audit staff's involvement in the client's accounting function does not represent a threat to independence because the audit staff are only performing menial and mostly immaterial accounting tasks.