Final answer:
An unmodified audit opinion is appropriate when a company has immaterial deviations from GAAP in lease recording. It may be accompanied by an emphasis-of-matter to inform users of the financial statements about the deviations without implying that the statements are not fairly presented.
Step-by-step explanation:
If a company has not followed generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) in the recording of its leases, but the amounts involved are immaterial, the appropriate audit opinion would typically be unmodified or unmodified with an additional paragraph.
While immaterial discrepancies might not require a qualified or adverse opinion, an auditor might still choose to draw attention to the non-compliance with an emphasis-of-matter or explanatory paragraph. This allows the company's financial statement users to be aware of the deviations from GAAP without suggesting that the financial statements overall are not fairly presented.
An emphasis-of-matter or explanatory paragraph would not modify the auditor's opinion on the financial statements as a whole but would instead provide additional information to ensure that the financial statement users understand the context and significance of the deviations in recording leases. In cases of immaterial discrepancies, such additional information would help clarify the situation without overstating its impact.