Audit Committees Fail to Curb Excessive Audit Fees in Malaysian Firms
This research looked at how certain factors within audit committees impact the fees companies pay for audits in Malaysia. They used data from over 4,500 observations of public-listed companies from 2003 to 2012. The study found that attributes like audit committee independence, expertise, meeting frequency, and size didn't significantly affect audit fees - suggesting they may not influence how much companies pay for audits. The researchers suggest studying other factors like communication within the audit committee and with the board, as well as their understanding of the company’s risks and control systems, to get a better picture of how audit committees function as internal governance mechanisms in companies.