Auditing Contracts: From Planning to Reporting

Course Background

This two-day course was designed for those interested in planning an effective audit of various contracts within their organization. The course is appropriate for auditors (staff level to CAE) and non-auditors who wish to know more about contract law and how to audit contracts.

This is an on-site course that will be delivered by a lawyer who is also a CIA! It will start with contract basics and expand into complex areas of contract provisions. This session includes an exciting mix of lecture, group discussion, breakout sessions, and complex problem solving.

Facilitator: James Scott Fargason

James Scott Fargason has an advanced law degree in International and Comparative Law. He has been a member of the auditing and legal professions for over 20 years. He has been retained as an expert in internal auditing, including 5 court cases litigating issues of internal auditor and/or audit committee performance.

Fargason has worked with a variety of reputable organizations including Deloitte, Microsoft, Brunswick, Mercury Marine, General Motors, Chase, Freddie Mac, Time Warner, the World Bank, IBM, and the Federal Reserve Bank. He has conducted audit and legal related services in Rhode Island, California, New York, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Alaska, Georgia, Ohio, and Arizona. Fargason has lectured in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Latin America to professionals in his field.

Fargason has won 11 teaching awards and has published numerous works in law and accounting. One of his works is the supplement for accountants to the #1 selling textbook in Business Law by Westlaw Publishing. His works on Auditing Legal Counsel and Improving Intellectual Property Management can be found on Amazon. He has also written extensively on Audit Committee Performance and Audit Committee Best Practices.

Fargason is the winner of the prestigious IIA Sawyer Award for his work on Continuous Auditing which was presented at the IIA International Conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina, resulting in a cash prize and a global IIA publication on audit software best practices.

In addition to the above, Professor Fargason has extensive university experience and has served on faculty at three nationally known research universities. He currently serves as a full-time faculty member for the MBA Program at LSU, and adjunct faculty at the LSU Law School. Over the years, he has taught a variety of subjects including law, internal auditing, financial accounting, managerial accounting, external auditing, fraud auditing, and cost accounting.

Course Outline

  1. Auditing Contracts - An Introduction
  2. Planning the Audit of Contracts
  3. Reviewing Contract Governance
  4. Auditing Contract Formation
  5. Examples of Contract Litigation
  6. Top Contract Controls to Assess
  7. Substantive Tests When Auditing Contracts
  8. The Report
  9. Litigation Involving Auditors and Accountants
  10. Legal Cases Involving Audit Committees
  11. IT Litigation and Audit Related Audit Concerns
  12. IT Legal Methods for Protecting Electronic Data
  13. Protecting Audit Workpapers
  14. Auditing Intellectual Property
  15. Top Controls for Intellectual Property
  16. Workshop Summary

You will want to be here if...

You are involved in auditing, preparing, reviewing, authorizing or initiating contracts. This course will be applicable, relevant and hands on to the local market.

The facilitator is open to receiving in advance  questions, areas of assistance and examples of documents used by your organization to assist with preparation.

Note: organizational information will remain anonymous.

For details in this regard, contact the event organizer by email at

© The Institute of Internal Auditors, Inc.