XBRL: A Review of How We Got Here and Where We Are

• In Event: Accounting Behavior and Organizations / Information Systems / Management Accounting
  In Paper Session: Accounting, Behavior and Organizations / Information Systems / Management Accounting

Abstract

With all SEC US GAAP filers being phased-in by June 2011, approximately 10,000 companies are filing financial statements in XBRL. Of those, only 1,700 have been phased-out of the limited liability provision. Today, regulators use XBRL to find errors in the financial statements, analysts and investors more quickly examine data, corporate financial officers make faster comparisons, auditors use it in benchmarking studies, and in corporate governance real-time information can impact the decision making process. How did XBRL evolve, what projects are being worked on, and what types of errors are being seen? This paper will provide a background on XBRL, the history, common mistakes, and where XBRL currently stands.

Author

• Andrea Scheetz, Case Western Reserve University