Deloitte Settles Again, And Again…

Don’t think me so naïve that I don’t understand the strategy of settling these things instead of fighting it out in court. But I know that in my half-Sicilian family, when we’re right, we’re right. We would never let our reputation and honor be shrouded by false accusations of incompetence, illegality or ineptitude. We fight, sometimes with the pen, sometimes with the sword.

But the audit firms have basically given up. Their goose is cooked. When was the last time you saw them pay the money, hire a shark, fight it out in court, and defend themselves as “professionals” to salvage their reputation and their honor?

Instead they not only throw their employees over the bridge but they are essentially laughing in your face, you the investor or employee or creditor or customer of the mismanaged and corrupt companies. They are saying, “We will cut and run to save our partners’ payout rather than fight for the truth. We no longer care for getting the truth out to either our staff, the governments that sponsor us or the shareholders that count on us.”

They settle and live on to audit another day, all the while adding unpredictable, inconsistent value to the process.

Lest we forget, Deloitte already paid a bundle to the SEC a while ago to settle their beef on this same subject. Big price for not signing the audit report…

Adelphia Recovery Trust Announces $167.5 Million Settlement With Deloitte &Touche

The Adelphia Recovery Trust announced today that it has reached a $167.5 million settlement of its claims against Adelphia’s former auditor Deloitte & Touche LLP in the lawsuit entitled Adelphia Communications Corp. v. Deloitte & Touche LLP, No. 000598(Pa. Court of Common Pleas, Phila. Cty)…Under the terms of the settlement, Deloitte & Touche will transfer the $167.5million settlement payment into an interest-bearing escrow account for the benefit of the Trust pending approval of the settlement by United States Bankruptcy Judge Robert E. Gerber…

The Trust stated through a spokesperson: “We are pleased with the settlement, which is among the largest settlements ever reached between a public accounting firm and its audit client…”