This was the finding of an online poll of more than 1,600 independent accountants conducted by AccountantsWorld.com. Of those polled, nearly 89 percent of respondents said the actions of Andersen in the Enron scandal have hurt the image of accountants.

“Most of my clients don’t understand the technical nuances of Andersen’s alleged misconduct, but they understand shredding documents, and they understand the total collapse of a big corporation,” said E. Lynn Nichols, CPA, a recognized expert on independent accounting issues and practicing CPA for 37 years.

“While much of the attention around the scandal has focused on the Big Five accounting firms, it’s important to realize that there are almost half a million small and mid-sized independent accounting firms who are being impacted by this case,” said Dr. Chandra Bhansali, President of AccountantsWorld.com. “These accountants comprise the majority of the profession, both in numbers and revenues."

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