Siemens 2009 Annual Report Download - page 299

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 Managing Board statements, Independent auditors’ report, Additional information
 Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
(in millions of €, except where otherwise
stated and per share amounts)
 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, currently the sole German pub-
licly traded corporation consolidated by the Company, pro-
vided the certification required by paragraph 161 of the Ger-
man stock corporation law (AktG). Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
made the certifications available to its shareholders.
This is a translation of the German “Konzernabschluss gemäß
§315a(1) HGB der Siemens AG zum 30. September 2009.“ Sole
authoritative and universally valid version is the German lan-
guage document.
▪ IT system audits that are not part of the annual audit
▪ Attestation services subject to regulatory requirements, in-
cluding regulatory advice
▪ Attestation and audits in connection with the European
Community Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic
Equipment
▪ Attestation of compliance with provisions or calculations
required by agreements
▪ Attest services in accordance with applicable standards,
other than audit services required by statute or other regu-
lation.
Services that are not included in one of the categories listed
above require specific pre-approval by the Audit Committee.
An approval may not be granted if the service falls into a cate-
gory of services not permitted by current law or if it is inconsis-
tent with ensuring the auditor’s independence, as expressed
in the four principles promulgated by the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission: (1) an auditor may not function in the
role of management; (2) an auditor may not audit his or her
own work; (3) an auditor may not serve in an advocacy role for
his or her client; and (4) an auditor may not provide services
creating a mutual or conflicting interest.
While non-audit-related services are not prohibited by law, ex-
cept for certain types of non-audited services enumerated in
the SEC’s rules, Siemens AG has decided as a matter of policy
not to engage the principal accountant to provide non audit-
related services unless there is a compelling advantage to the
Company in using the principal accountant and it can clearly
be shown that there is no impairment of independence.