To ensure independence and objective mental attitude, the internal audit activity is free from interference by anyone in the organization, including issues such as audit selection, scope, procedure, frequency, duration or content of the audit report. • Internal auditors are accountable to management, while auditors are accountable to shareholders. Internal audit aims to assess the organization, to know and manage all risks according to the procedures implemented, and to identify opportunities for improvement. That is, internal auditors are responsible for assessing whether the organization is effectively managing risks, identifying opportunities, or applying the necessary controls, while ensuring that all internal and external rules and regulations are followed. A good audit of the legal department can lead to significant changes within the organization. Auditors can make meaningful recommendations on the quality of the legal work done. The operational review of legal services can lead to recommendations that lead to cost reductions. A competent audit team, in carrying out its work, always has the opportunity to provide valuable information on how to improve a company`s processes, including legal processes. Among the activities that an auditor can develop in the evaluation of the legal field is the execution of content tests to perform analyses.

Like what. Evolution of legal fees from one month to the next and from one year to the next. To improve data analysis, auditors can compare analysis results with comparable organizations within the same industry. Another criterion is whether the fees charged for legal services correspond to the contract for legal services. Trend hours billed over time, sorted by lawyer and service type, can identify discrepancies. Internal audit is an independent and objective activity that aims to bring added value to the company, improve an organization`s operations, minimize risks, optimize the company and make it profitable. Through internal audits, companies achieve their objectives by offering a systematic and disciplined approach by assessing and improving the effectiveness of risk management, control and governance processes. Internal audit makes it easier for management to verify that the functions of each department are being performed correctly and objectively and, if necessary, that action is being taken. Although there is an accountant in each organization who records financial transactions and for general accounting, companies must go through an audit, which is a kind of audit of the company`s financial statements prepared by the accountant. This audit is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 1956 (to give opinions under section 227 of the Act).

This audit is a tool to safeguard the interests of the company`s shareholders to ensure that the organization is functioning satisfactorily financially. However, there are companies that undergo an internal audit to ensure that they comply with accounting rules and regulations and review the statements prepared by accountants. There are many differences between an internal audit and an audit that are highlighted in this article. An auditor should remember that an audit report on the legal field can warn of situations that may constitute a source of legal liability for the company. The information collected and reported should highlight descriptive data and limit evaluative observations, in particular assumptions and opinions. • Although the purpose of statutory audit and internal audit is the same and is to review the financial performance of the company and ensure that all accounting rules and regulations are complied with, the scope of audit is much broader than internal audit. Another issue that should be the subject of the auditors` assessment is the control of legal fees. Lawyers are also faced with financial responsibilities, such as: Budget monitoring and expenditure reporting, so legal audits should focus on assessing controls that can reduce legal costs and improve the efficiency of the department. The auditor may have a preliminary approach to the legal process to begin as a whole. Problems can arise if the demand for services is informal and without clear parameters. The auditor must assess the inventory of legal services provided to the organization.

In summary, internal audits have a complete and general scope in terms of assessing management systems, but the compliance auditor, although he has flexibility in all areas of the organization, only deals with issues related to compliance with standards. The role of the Office of Internal Audit (OIA) is to provide internal audit and evaluation services to the organization. The OIA follows the professional standards of the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), which defines internal audit as an independent and objective auditing and consulting activity aimed at adding value and improving an organization`s operations. It helps an organization achieve its objectives by providing a systematic and disciplined approach to assessing and improving the effectiveness of risk management, control and governance processes. OIA has adopted this definition of IIA Internal Audit. In addition to conducting internal audits and evaluations, IES also has the mandate – in Financial Rule 12(d) – to conduct investigations. (However, research is not at the heart of the OIA`s mission.) The cooperation of the legal and audit teams is particularly useful for the preparation and publication of financial statements. For this reason, it is important for an auditor to inquire about the following: the statutory auditor should review compliance and cooperation with the legal adviser as an important part of the overall internal control structure. There should be no system of internal controls with robust compliance, risk and internal audit activities with ineffective and ineffective legal advice.