2006. évi 1. szám - Jura - Pécsi Tudományegyetem

Irimie Emil Popa–Adrian Inceu: Law and accounting interference
Ph.D. Irimie Emil Popa
Lecturer professor
Ph.D. Adrian Inceu
Lecturer professor
“Babes-Bolyai” ¸ University Cluj-Napoca, Rumania
Law and accounting
interference
The patrimony represents a specific category of any law
subject. Each law subject is compelled to hold the bookkeeping
of their own patrimony, and of the transactions
and the financial operations that they have contracted.
We can no longer have doubts upon the relationship
established between Law and accounting,
because in present, we cannot speak of accounting
without taking into consideration law. We can
therefore present various arguments to express this
relationship. Without having any interest in creating
further disagreements between the two fields taken
under consideration, we assert that the interdependence
between law and accounting has the purpose
of clarifying common aspects of their application.
We shall focus on some of the most important
and solid arguments that bring together law and
accounting.
From a classical point of view, we can define the
object study of accounting as being the patrimony of
the entity, which is in fact the cumulating of the rights
and obligations of a patrimony titular. Accounting
as a process highlights and studies the relationships
between the patrimony titulars and the other law
subjects.
In fact, the fundamental equality assets = liabilities
was born out of the necessity of depicting and
quantifying some exchange judicial reports.
Accountancy does not reflect only the “tangible
reality” having either a material and/or an immaterial
form but it also concerns judiciary abstrac tiveness.
In present some experts sustain the substance
over form principle. According to this point of view
the most important thing is not the property records
regarding the property of assets, but the property
of the assets of bringing future economical benefits.
This is a pragmatic approach, of Anglo-Saxon
origin, present in the International Accounting Standards
as well. All this ended up in substituting the
patrimony with the financial position of the entity.
If from an economical point of view we can abdicate
the concept of patrimony, from a juridical point
of view this is impossible. But accounting and law
are not irreconcilable form this point of view.
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If the concept of patrimony suffers no change
from an economical point of view, we shall have a
serious theme for debating in the near future.
Firstly, the elaboration of a theory of outside balance
sheet engagements will allow changes in the
traditional approach (patrimonial approach) of both
Law and Accounting allowing an improvement in
their economical and financial sides.
Secondly, accounting is strongly normalised
and regulated by specific laws in a large number of
European countries. In a lot of cases we encounter
detailed regulations regarding the accounting technique.
Accounting regulations are subject to different
juridical frameworks, specific to each and every
country. Inevitably there are multiple interferences
between accounting and law.
The entity is the field where the fiscal law, the
company law and the commercial law interfere, both
among themselves and with accounting as well.
For instance the establishment of the quantum of
taxes makes object of special laws and/or regulations
all over the world. Accountancy interferes more or
less with the laws and regulations that we have mentioned
above, depending on the connectivity degree
of accountancy-fiscal laws. More and more experts
agree to the conclusions that a total accounting-fiscal
regulation discount is impossible to be accomplished.
Thirdly, if we consider accountancy from a
conceptual point of view, as a science belonging to
the group of social-administration sciences, we can
observe that at an entity level there exists an interference
with the juridical side in what the technical
problems are concerned. Accounting is the resultant
of the junction between administration and law.
The fundamental objective of accounting is to
offer useful information to those showing interest,
thus respecting the truthfulness of information, the
legal regulations and the true and fair view principle.
Therefore the proper information given to the
users of accounting information can be realized only
by respecting the true and fair view principle. The
true and fair view is understood in many accounting
systems as respecting the professional and/or
legal regulations. We also mention that presenting
deliberately erroneous information of the financial
statements draws penal responsibility upon those
who are responsible in most of the European Union
Countries.
Another argument for our research is that accounting
information supplied constitutes a juridical
proof in the juridical process both in criminal law
and in civil law. Therefore, accounting offers written
proof that can be used in the judicial accounting
expertise.
Last but not least, we can assert that the juridical
JURA 2006/1.