Effective Corporate Governance and Financial Reporting in Japan

Khondaker Mizanur Rahman and Marc Bremer ()
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Khondaker Mizanur Rahman: School of Business Administration, Nanzan University, 18 Yamazato-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, 466-8673 Japan
Marc Bremer: School of Business Administration, Nanzan University, 18 Yamazato-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, 466-8673 Japan

Asian Academy of Management Journal of Accounting and Finance (AAMJAF), 2016, vol. 12, issue Suppl. 1, 93–122

Abstract: This paper examines corporate governance in Japan since the 1990s. Its focus includes financial reporting, a key part of good governance. It offers an overview of various legal, institutional, and stakeholder aspects of governance, followed by an investigation of Japanese accounting, disclosure, and reporting. The paper presumes that accurate financial reporting is a prerequisite for good corporate governance. Bad governance often follows from fraudulent financial reporting. The paper also considers the status of international financial reporting standards, the nature of fraudulent financial reporting, the all-too-common practice of window dressing in Japan, the liabilities of corporate audit board members and financial auditors. Our findings suggest that the existing high quality laws, codes, guidelines, and institutional arrangements do improve corporate governance. Yet in practice, the quality of corporate governance in Japan has not matched the quality of its codes and regulations. The paper discusses Japan's new corporate governance code. It concludes that this code is excellent, but that more needs to be done to improve financial reporting. Finally, a number of suggestions are offered to enhance corporate governance and reduce fraudulent reporting.

Keywords: corporate governance; financial reporting; Japan; window dressing; Japan's new corporate governance code (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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