Ethics for Washington CPAs – 4 Hours

A CPA is challenged in today’s work world not only to serve a client or employer, but also to protect the public interest by ensuring transparency in financial reporting and the fair administration of the tax laws. In balancing those two duties, a CPA can find themselves in a genuine ethical dilemma.

This four-hour course works through that tension in three stages. Part I sets out the ethical frameworks that underpin professional judgment — consequentialism, deontology and virtue ethics — and shows how a CPA’s conclusion can shift depending on which lens is applied. Part II turns to the rules themselves: the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct alongside the Washington Public Accountancy Act (RCW 18.04) and the Board rules in the Washington Administrative Code (WAC 4-30) that govern the practice and responsibilities of Washington licensees. Part III closes with putting ethics into action — the rationalizations that precede misconduct, the warning signs of an organization on the verge of ethical collapse, and what it takes to rebuild moral character after a lapse.

The Washington material is current through the October 2025 rule changes, covering the revised education and experience requirements (WAC 4-30-060, 4-30-070, 4-30-072), initial licensure (WAC 4-30-080), the new restrictions on the CPA-inactive and CPA-retired titles (WAC 4-30-057), other authorized titles (WAC 4-30-058), practice privileges (WAC 4-30-090), and the updated Board policy on publication of disciplinary actions. It also covers independence and the seven threats framework, conflicts of interest, confidential client information, contingent fees and commissions, records requests, acts discreditable, CPE requirements and documentation, and the Board’s authority to impose discipline, fines and restitution.

Throughout, the material is built on case studies drawn from real events, including WorldCom, HealthSouth, the 2007–2010 mortgage crisis, Toronto-Dominion Bank, the Scott London insider-trading case at KPMG, and the Collin Street Bakery embezzlement. The emphasis is on determining the course of action that upholds the intent of the rules, not merely technical compliance with them.

Of the four CPE credit hours awarded, two hours are Washington-specific rules and regulations.

Learning objectives

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

1. Identify the three normative ethical frameworks — consequentialism, deontology and virtue ethics — and apply each to an ethical dilemma of the kind a CPA encounters in practice.
2. Recognize the intent behind the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct, the Washington Public Accountancy Act and the Board rules in the Washington Administrative Code, as distinct from mere technical compliance with them.
3. Apply ethical judgment in interpreting those rules to determine where the public interest lies, and place the public interest ahead of self-interest even at the cost of a job or a client.
4. Determine how the AICPA Code and the Washington statutes and rules apply across different practice settings, including CPAs performing attest and non-attest services for clients, CPAs in industry providing internal accounting and auditing services, and CPAs in education or government.
5. Identify the Washington statutes, rules and Board policies currently in effect — including the 2025 changes to education, experience, licensure, titles and practice privileges — and determine how each applies to a Washington licensee.