Neiman Marcus 2009 Annual Report Download - page 97

Table of Contents
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of Neiman Marcus, Inc.
We have audited Neiman Marcus, Inc.'s internal control over financial reporting as of July 31, 2010, based on criteria
established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway
Commission (the COSO criteria). Neiman Marcus, Inc.'s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over
financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the
accompanying Management's Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the
Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audit.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United
States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal
control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal
control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating
effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the
circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
A company's internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the
reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles. A company's internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that
(1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the
assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial
statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being
made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance
regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the company's assets that could have a
material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also,
projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of
changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
In our opinion, Neiman Marcus, Inc. maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as
of July 31, 2010, based on the COSO criteria.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States),
the consolidated balance sheets of Neiman Marcus, Inc. as of July 31, 2010 and August 1, 2009, and the related consolidated
statements of operations, cash flows, and shareholders' equity for each of the three years in the period ended July 31, 2010 of Neiman
Marcus, Inc. and our report dated October 1, 2010 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.
/S/ ERNST & YOUNG LLP
Dallas, Texas
October 1, 2010
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