Firms subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 are required by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 to maintain satisfactory internal control. The role of the independent auditor relative to this act is to

Answer (D) is correct. Whether a client is in conformity with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act is a legal question. Auditors cannot be expected to provide clients or users of the financial statements with legal advice. The role of the auditor is to assess control risk in the course of an engagement to attest to the fair presentation of the financial statements.