SOX aims to eliminate these conflicts of interest in a few ways. First, it mandates that public companies create audit committees that are independent of management. These committees are responsible for hiring and coordinating with independent auditors. SOX also makes it illegal for organizations to attempt to influence the outcomes of audits. More @Wikipedia
Hover over any link to get a description of the article. Please note that search keywords are sometimes hidden within the full article and don't appear in the description or title.