The study looked at how abnormal audit fees in German companies can affect the quality of audits. They found that when audit fees are higher than usual, the quality of the audit tends to be lower. This suggests that when auditors charge extra fees, their independence might be compromised because they are too close to the client. On the other hand, when clients have more power in negotiations, getting a discount on audit fees doesn't necessarily mean the audit quality will suffer. The researchers used data from over 2,000 firm-year observations between 2005 and 2010 to reach these conclusions.