| Item 4.01. | Changes in Registrant’s Certifying Accountant. |
Following a request for proposal (RFP) process, effective December 22, 2020 (the “Effective Date”), the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors (“Board”) of Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (“Meridian” or the “Company”) selected Ernst & Young LLP (“EY”) as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the Company’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2021. The Audit Committee dismissed Grant Thornton LLP (“Grant Thornton”), the Company’s current independent registered public accounting firm, effective as of the Effective Date.
Grant Thornton’s reports on the Company’s consolidated financial statements as of and for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019 did not contain any adverse opinion or disclaimer of opinion, nor were they qualified or modified as to uncertainty, audit scope, or accounting principles. During the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, and the subsequent interim period through the Effective Date, there were: (i) no disagreements within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(iv) of Regulation S-K and the related instructions between the Company and Grant Thornton on any matters of accounting principles or practices, consolidated financial statement disclosure, or auditing scope or procedure which, if not resolved to Grant Thornton’s satisfaction, would have caused Grant Thornton to make reference thereto in their reports; and (ii) no “reportable events” within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.
The Company has requested that Grant Thornton furnish a letter addressed to the Securities and Exchange Commission stating whether or not it agrees with the above statements, and, if not, stating the respects in which it does not agree. A copy of Grant Thornton’s letter, dated December 28, 2020, is filed as Exhibit 16.1 to this Form 8-K.
During the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019 and the subsequent interim period through the Effective Date, neither the Company nor anyone on its behalf has consulted with EY regarding: (i) the application of accounting principles to a specific transaction, either completed or proposed, or the type of audit opinion that might be rendered on the Company’s consolidated financial statements, and neither a written report nor oral advice was provided to the Company that EY concluded was an important factor considered by the Company in reaching a decision as to any accounting, auditing, or financial reporting issue; (ii) any matter that was the subject of a disagreement within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(iv) of Regulation S-K and the related instructions; or (iii) any “reportable event” within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.
| Item 9.01. | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits
