Denial is costly because it sends a negative signal that management fails to accept responsibility for a breach in internal control. This negative signal is costly because it implies that management is abdicating its fundamental responsibility for compliance with SOX (PCAOB 2007, para. 75). The benefit of denial is achieving a disassociation between a control deviation and a control deficiency. However, given management's self-serving incentives to avoid reporting a deficiency, denial lacks credibility if, prior to the denial, auditors have already observed a control deviation that indicates a deficiency. Further, in formation that reduces perceived management blame cannot completely undo the evidence based association between an observed control deviation and a control deficiency. In this setting, we expect the cost of denial to exceed its benefit regardless of the presence or absence of information that reduces management blame.