Which of the following is NOT a characteristic that audit evidence should have?

Audit evidence is crucial for auditors to form their opinions on financial statements. It needs to possess certain characteristics to ensure its reliability and effectiveness.

One key characteristic is that evidence must be sufficient, meaning there should be enough of it to support the conclusions drawn in the audit process. This typically refers to the quantity of evidence available, which ensures that the conclusions aren’t drawn from a tiny or unrepresentative sample.

Relevance is another important characteristic. Evidence must be applicable to the assertions being tested. If the audit evidence doesn’t have a direct connection to the financial statements or the items under review, it doesn’t serve its purpose.

Competence refers to the quality and credibility of the evidence. Competent evidence is reliable, which means it can come from credible sources and methods. This ensures that the evidence can be trusted to substantiate the auditor's findings.

Dispositive, while an interesting term, is not a standard characteristic used to describe audit evidence. It suggests something that conclusively resolves a matter, but this is not a typical criterion for the validity of audit evidence. Instead, audits often deal with likelihood and support rather than having evidence that is fully dispositive. Therefore, identifying dispositive as not a staple characteristic aligns with the principles auditors follow to assess