Regarding changes of accounting principle: I have read your schwersernotes and CFA books on this, but still I cannot figure out when prior years financial statements hve to be restated. And if so, how many years you go back to restate. One year of all of the years? I have received this summary of FASB, but it is still not clear his Statement replaces APB Opinion No. 20, Accounting Changes, and FASB Statement No. 3, Reporting Accounting Changes in Interim Financial Statements, and changes the requirements for the accounting for and reporting of a change in accounting principle. This Statement applies to all voluntary changes in accounting principle. It also applies to changes required by an accounting pronouncement in the unusual instance that the pronouncement does not include specific transition provisions. When a pronouncement includes specific transition provisions, those provisions should be followed. Opinion 20 previously required that most voluntary changes in accounting principle be recognized by including in net income of the period of the change the cumulative effect of changing to the new accounting principle. This Statement requires retrospective application to prior periods’ financial statements of changes in accounting principle, unless it is impracticable to determine either the period-specific effects or the cumulative effect of the change. When it is impracticable to determine the period-specific effects of an accounting change on one or more individual prior periods presented, this Statement requires that the new accounting principle be applied to the balances of assets and liabilities as of the beginning of the earliest period for which retrospective application is practicable and that a corresponding adjustment be made to the opening balance of retained earnings (or other appropriate components of equity or net assets in the statement of financial position) for that period rather than being reported in an income statement. When it is impracticable to determine the cumulative effect of applying a change in accounting principle to all prior periods, this Statement requires that the new accounting principle be applied as if it were adopted prospectively from the earliest date practicable. This Statement defines retrospective application as the application of a different accounting principle to prior accounting periods as if that principle had always been used or as the adjustment of previously issued financial statements to reflect a change in the reporting entity. This Statement also redefines restatement as the revising of previously issued financial statements to reflect the correction of an error. This Statement requires that retrospective application of a change in accounting principle be limited to the direct effects of the change. Indirect effects of a change in accounting principle, such as a change in nondiscretionary profit-sharing payments resulting from an accounting change, should be recognized in the period of the accounting change. This Statement also requires that a change in depreciation, amortization, or depletion method for long-lived, nonfinancial assets be accounted for as a change in accounting estimate effected by a change in accounting principle. This Statement carries forward without change the guidance contained in Opinion 20 for reporting the correction of an error in previously issued financial statements and a change in accounting estimate. This Statement also carries forward the guidance in Opinion 20 requiring justification of a change in accounting principle on the basis of preferability.
whoa!
Let me rephrase. If you have change of accounting principle e.g. from Lifo to Fifo. You have to restate prior financial statements, and the cummulative effect on prior period result is reported net of tax (below the line). but what I do not understand is how many years you have to restate you financial statements. I this one year back of several years back???
Typically if you restate due to a change in accounting principle, you would restate the periods presented in that year’s financials. So if you restated in 2007, most companies present three years of financials, so you would restate 2005 and 2006 in your 2007 financial statements. Restating due to an error is much different. Then you restate every year that is materially mistated.