Public Accounting Report

Public Accounting Report is a specialist business publication focused on the public accounting profession in the United States. Established in 1978, it provides information about the competitive environment, management issues, market structure, and business practices of public accounting firms. Rather than functioning as a general-interest accounting magazine or a technical tax and auditing manual, the publication is positioned around the business side of the profession and the intelligence needs of accounting-firm executives, professional-services strategists, educators, and other industry observers. The publication is issued as a monthly eight-page newsletter. Its compact format reflects a briefing-oriented editorial model: readers receive recurring coverage of developments affecting accounting firms and the broader structure of the profession rather than a long-form magazine with extensive consumer or lifestyle content. The title has been available in both paper and digital formats, allowing it to serve traditional newsletter subscribers as well as users seeking electronic access through professional information platforms. A distinctive part of the brand is its use of recurring comparative and survey-based features. The PAR Top 100 ranks the largest accounting firms in the United States and provides a reference point for evaluating the scale and competitive position of firms in the market. The PAR Professors Survey ranks accounting programs in the United States according to the opinions of accounting professors at American universities. Together, these features extend the publication beyond news reporting: they create annual reference products that are used to compare professional-services firms and accounting education programs. Public Accounting Report was founded independently in 1978 and was later associated with Strafford Publications. In 2002, Strafford Publications sold the publication to Wolters Kluwer. Following the transaction, the title was managed within Wolters Kluwer's CCH business, placing it alongside the company's broader portfolio of professional information and accounting-related products. The ownership change connected a niche trade publication with a larger international information-services group while preserving its specialized focus on public accounting. The brand's principal audience is the U.S. public accounting sector, including leaders and decision-makers at accounting firms, professionals tracking firm competition, accounting academics, and users interested in rankings and industry trends. Its value proposition is specialized, recurring intelligence about the organization and economics of public accounting. The available reference material does not establish a separate consumer-facing product range, a public-company listing, or a distinct corporate entity separate from its publishing operations.

Public Accounting Report was established in 1978 as a publication dedicated to the business and competitive dimensions of the public accounting profession. Its subject matter distinguishes it from technical accounting references that primarily explain standards, tax rules, or audit procedures. The title instead addresses the structure and operation of the profession: the position of firms in the market, competitive developments, business strategy, and other issues relevant to public accounting as an industry. The publication developed as a monthly eight-page newsletter. This format gave it a concise, recurring briefing function, with coverage intended for readers who needed focused information about accounting firms and the professional-services marketplace. The publication was based in Chicago, Illinois, and its stated market was the United States public accounting sector. Over time, both paper and digital versions became available, extending the title's distribution beyond a traditional print newsletter model. Among the publication's best-known proprietary features is the PAR Top 100, an annual ranking of the 100 largest accounting firms in the United States. The ranking provides a recurring comparative framework for assessing firm scale and competitive standing. Another established feature is the PAR Professors Survey, an annual ranking of U.S. accounting programs based on the views of accounting professors at American universities. This survey gives the publication a connection to accounting education as well as to professional practice. The title was associated with Strafford Publications before changing ownership in 2002. In that year, Strafford Publications sold Public Accounting Report to Wolters Kluwer. After the sale, the publication was managed under Wolters Kluwer's CCH brand. The transaction placed the newsletter within a larger professional-information company with activities in accounting, tax, legal, and business content, while the publication retained its narrow editorial focus on public accounting. The available reference material does not identify the publication's founder, individual editors, detailed circulation figures, subscription revenue, or subsequent ownership changes. It also does not document a separate incorporated company operating under the Public Accounting Report name. On the available evidence, the brand is best characterized as a specialized publication within the CCH portfolio of Wolters Kluwer. Its continuing identity is based on recurring professional coverage and its annual firm and academic rankings.

• 2002

  Acquisition by Wolters Kluwer

  [1]Public Accounting Reporten.wikipedia.org

  Strafford Publications sells the publication to Wolters Kluwer, after which it is managed under the CCH brand.

• 1978

  Publication founded

  [1]Public Accounting Reporten.wikipedia.org

  Public Accounting Report is established as a monthly newsletter covering competitive intelligence and the business side of public accounting.

A specialist trade-information brand for competitive intelligence, business developments, firm rankings, and educational benchmarking within the U.S. public accounting profession.

• Trade newsletter · 1978

  Public Accounting Report

  The core product is a monthly eight-page newsletter focused on competitive intelligence and business developments in the U.S. public accounting profession. It has been offered in both print and digital formats and is intended for readers who need specialized information about accounting-firm competition, industry structure, and professional-services business issues.

• Annual accounting-firm ranking

  PAR Top 100

  The PAR Top 100 is an annual ranking of the 100 largest accounting firms in the United States. It functions as a recurring benchmarking feature within the publication, giving professional readers a comparative view of firm size and relative position in the U.S. public accounting market.

• Annual accounting-education survey

  PAR Professors Survey

  The PAR Professors Survey is an annual ranking of accounting programs in the United States based on the opinions of accounting professors at American universities. It broadens the publication's coverage from accounting-firm competition to the academic institutions that educate future accounting professionals.

• 2002

  Sale to Wolters KluwerM&A

  Background

  Public Accounting Report had been associated with Strafford Publications before the ownership transaction.

  Action taken

  Strafford Publications sold the publication to Wolters Kluwer, which placed it under the CCH brand.

  Aftermath

  The newsletter became part of Wolters Kluwer's professional information portfolio while continuing to focus on the public accounting sector.

  Source

1. 1Public Accounting Reporten.wikipedia.org
2. 2CCH product page for Public Accounting Reportcchgroup.com