CHECKING THE NUMBERS Audit Committees in Spotlight Following Sarbanes-Oxley Reform By CHRIS CZIBORR So what's new for corporate audit committees more than a year after Sarbanes-Oxley accounting reform? More meetings that last longer, according to a study from Deloitte & Touche LLP. "There really is a heightened emphasis and more of a spotlight on the audit committee," said Tom Crane, a member of the executive committee and partner in the corporate practice at Costa Mesa law firm Rutan & Tucker LLP. "There's a tremendous need to have qualified board members populate the audit committee, particularly with respect to ensuring the company's controls and procedures are sufficient," Crane said. Among its reforms, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act makes chief executives and directors sign off on a company's financials,potentially making them liable for corporate fraud. The reform also requires accounting firms hired to do the books to report directly to the company's audit committee.