Auditor's liability to third parties / Kedong Luhat

There has been so much controversy on auditors' duty, in particular their duty to third parties. A lot of debate in and out of the court has been going on concerning whether an auditor owe a duty of care to another party beside his own client or otherwise. If there is, what is the extent of such liability and by how much in monetary value can the third party obtain redress. Another very controversal area is the question of what are the 'acceptable measures' to prevent and limit these liabilities in order not to lose the credibility of the published financial statements.