Assignment title: Information


Advise Tom, Jane & Co of its potential liability to the Sunflower Bank Ltd and its ordinary shareholders.Hoping to expand rapidly, a newly Sydney based firm of Chartered Accountants, Tom, Jane & Co ("TJC"), offered a special deal for potential clients. TJC would audit their business for no fee in the first year of a four-year contract. A newly listed public company, Sunflower Bank Ltd ("Sunflower"), took up its offer in May 2016. Thereafter, however, TJC's cut-prices expansion strategy proved fatally flawed. Owing to acost minimization approach, it failed to properly audit Sunflower Bank's accounting system for the financial year ended 30 June 2016. Consequently, it failed to detect a $65 million fraud perpetrated by its Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") Ms. Ann and her assistant, Mr. Claudio. As a result, Sunflower's audited accounts as submitted to the Australian Stock Exchange in August 2016 were not true and correct as mandated. Shortly thereafter, its ordinary shares fell by $50 million when the fraud was uncovered. Required: Referring to relevant cases and general Australian Tort Law rules in relation to negligence (ignoring the technicalities of corporate law), the principles articulated in Perre v Apand Pty Ltd [1999] HCA 36 in particular and the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) where relevant.