Mattel 2008 Annual Report Download - page 59

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of Mattel, Inc.
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements listed in the index appearing under Item 15(a)(1) present
fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Mattel, Inc. and its subsidiaries at December 31, 2008 and
December 31, 2007, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the three years in the period
ended December 31, 2008 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of
America. In addition, in our opinion, the financial statement schedule listed in the index appearing under
Item 15(a)(2) presents fairly, in all material respects, the information set forth therein when read in conjunction with
the related consolidated financial statements. Also in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects,
effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2008, based on criteria established in Internal
Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway
Commission (COSO). The Company’s management is responsible for these financial statements and financial
statement schedule, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in Management’s Report on Internal Control over
Financial Reporting appearing under Item 8. Our responsibility is to express opinions on these financial statements,
on the financial statement schedule, and on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our
integrated audits. We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting
Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable
assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement and whether effective internal
control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audits of the financial statements
included examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements,
assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall
financial statement presentation. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an
understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and
testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our
audits also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe
that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.
As discussed in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, during the year ended December 31, 2007,
Mattel, Inc. changed the manner in which it accounts for uncertain tax positions. Also, as discussed in Note 1 to
the consolidated financial statements, during the year ended December 31, 2006, Mattel, Inc. changed the manner
which it accounts for defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans.
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 (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail,
accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (ii) 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 (iii) 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.
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