KPMG

KPMG's newly appointed chairman Mike Ebeid previously accused Labor senator Deborah O'Neill of making "completely false" statements to the senate when she revealed a whistleblower's allegations of misconduct at the firm.

A Treasury report has suggested splitting audit functions off from multidisciplinary professional services firms, following whistleblower claims that KPMG leaked confidential client information.

A shareholder class action has won access to reports by FTI Consulting and KPMG that were commissioned by water remediation company Phoslock, with a judge finding they were not created for the dominant purpose of providing legal advice.

KPMG's national chairman Martin Sheppard is stepping down to make way for an independent chair, and audit partners Eileen Hoggett and Paul Rogers are leaving the firm.

Under pressure from parliamentary committee members, KPMG said late Friday it would waive privilege and hand over investigation reports from Allens and Ashurst, after initially resisting orders for documents.

A shareholder class action against water treatment firm Phoslock wants the company to hand over reports by KPMG and FTI Consulting, arguing the material is not protected by legal professional privilege because it wasn't produced for the dominant purpose of providing legal advice.

ASIC’s chair says the corporate cop is investigating individuals at KPMG for alleged misuse of confidential information belonging to Lendlease and Optus to win new work, but says it is hamstrung by current law from undertaking a broader probe. 

A senator has criticised KPMG for claiming a commitment to transparency while also maintaining legal professional privilege over advice from Allens and Ashurst into the alleged misuse of confidential information.

Facing the hotseat over KPMG's treatment of a whisteblower, the accounting giant's former CEO Andrew Yates told a parliamentary committee hearing on Friday he took accountability and was not a "bad apple".

Lendlease chair John Gillam has said the company's board was “deeply discontented” with KPMG’s alleged misuse of its confidential information but was stuck with the accounting firm until the end of the financial year.