The Audit Committee(now «Audit and Risks Committee» according to the new version of the Italian corporate governancecode) has acquired an increasingly significant role in the oversight system of Italianlisted companies. This paper, after some preliminary observations about the audit function ofthe board in general, examines the following four features related to the Audit Committee: itsfunctions; the relationship between the Committee and the Board of Directors; the liabilityof members of the Audit Committee; the relationship between the Committee and the SupervisoryBoard.