Two decades after Arthur Andersen LLP’s downfall, the firm that audited Enron Corp.’s financial statements remains a punchline for many, though some prefer to remember it as an influential institution deserving of respect.
The accounting firm stopped auditing public companies on Aug. 31, 2002, and wound down its operations. Its demise turned the Big Five into the Big Four: Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., Ernst & Young LLP, KPMG LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
