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Contemporary Accounting Research is the premier research journal of the Canadian Academic Accounting Association (CAAA). Since its inception in Autumn of 1984, CAR has grown both in size and in popularity, and now finds itself ranked in the top handful of academic accounting journals worldwide. Serving a global audience, CAR is of particular interest to accounting academics, PhD students, and practitioners.

CAR is an academic research journal published under the auspices of the CAAA. One volume per calendar year is published, each volume consisting of four issues. Occasionally special issues and/or monographs are released which are dedicated solely to a project of research. These issues supplement the regular annual issues.

CAR is a multi-focus journal that accepts and publishes academic papers from any area of accounting, auditing, and tax research. As dictated in the Aims and Scope of the journal, CAR is dedicated to the advancement of accounting knowledge and provides a forum for the publication of high quality manuscripts with original theoretical/empirical analyses, either basic or applied in nature, that are of interest to the Canadian accounting community. Creative interdisciplinary papers and articles stemming from research paradigms rooted in various disciplines, that advance the understanding of accounting phenomena, are also encouraged. Please see the submission guidelines for detailed information.

The first issue of Contemporary Accounting Research was published in 1984 under the capable direction of founding editor, Haim Falk (University of Calgary/McMaster University). Starting off small, the first volume numbered only 273 pages, but already boasted an impressive list of papers accepted for subsequent issues. As interest in the journal grew, so did the volume of papers both submitted to, and accepted by, CAR. By the time Haim Falk's term was up in 1989, the journal had secured the position of Canada's foremost academic accounting journal. So great was the interest in CAR, that Volume 6 (co-edited by Haim Falk and the new editor William Scott [University of Waterloo]) numbered 961 pages and had to split into three issues.

Bill Scott carried on the tradition of furthering the scope and reputation of the journal until the reins were passed, in 1992, to the third editor, Michael Gibbins (University of Alberta). Dr. Gibbins, supported by an 45 person editorial board added two new divisions to the journal between 1992 and 1995; a section dedicated to the research of accounting education (Education Research), and one to replications, reanalyses, and updates of previous works (Improvements and Updates). 1994 marked the ten-year anniversary of Contemporary Accounting Research and was "celebrated" with an article in the journal which showed recent research studies placing CAR among the top four leading accounting journals worldwide. 

The reins were passed in May of 1995 to the next editor, Lane Daley, from the University of Alberta. Dr. Daley had to resign in April 1997, because of ill health. Dr. Michael Gibbins served as interim editor until July 1, 1997, when Dr. Gerald Feltham and Dr. Dan Simunic of the University of British Columbia took over. Dr. Gordon D. Richardson of the University of Toronto assumed the editorship of CAR on January 1, 2001 to December 31, 2006. Dr. Michel Magnan of The John Molson School of Business, Concordia University held the editorship of CAR from January 1, 2007 to April 30, 2010. From 2010 until April 30, 2013, Dr. Steven Salterio of the Queen's School of Business at Queen's University was the Editor (in-Chief). Dr. Patricia C. O'Brien from the University of Waterloo is the current Editor-in-Chief since May 1, 2013.

CAR is released quarterly, in the Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Release dates are set as follows:  

• Spring issue - March
• Summer issue - June
• Fall issue - September
• Winter issue - December

A two-day conference is held each year.

The financial grant of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada is greatly appreciated.