XBRL Will Keep Investors Wanting More

Be prepared for hard questions.If Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Christopher Cox gets his wish and companies universally adopt XBRL to file their financial statements, investors and analysts will be asking CFOs tougher questions.By using the XBRL programming language, which eliminate...

By Sarah Johnson • Sept. 29, 2006

HealthSouth Settles for $445 Million

HealthSouth Corp. has agreed to pay $445 million to settle several lawsuits against the health-care provider and some of its former directors and officers stemming from its accounting scandal. Under the deal, HealthSouth will shell out $215 million in common stock and warrants, and its insurance ...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 27, 2006

SEC Charges Ex-RenaissanceRe Controller

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed civil fraud charges against three former top executives RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. — including the former controller — for misusing finite insurance. The complaint alleges that James N. Stanard and Martin J. Merritt, the former CEO and former con...

By Tim Reason • Sept. 27, 2006

SEC Hires a Company It’s Investigating

A subcontractor hired on Monday by the Securities and Exchange Commission to work on its new, interactive regulatory filing system doesn’t have enough confidence in its own financial statements to file on time. What’s more, the firm is under formal investigation by the SEC because of the company’...

By Marie Leone • Sept. 27, 2006

Fastow Sentenced to Six Years in Prison

Former Enron Corp. CFO Andrew Fastow was sentenced Tuesday to six years in prison. The sentence is four years less than the 10 years he agreed to under a prior plea deal for his role in the fraud that plunged the one-time energy giant into bankruptcy.The judge, in the case was not bound by Fastow...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 26, 2006

Olis Sentence Cut to Six Years

The former Dynegy Inc. tax executive Jamie Olis’ sentence was re-sentenced Friday to six years in prison, down from the initial 24 years, according to Bloomberg.The original sentence was tossed out by a Federal appeals court, which ruled that Judge Sim Lake — who also presided over the trial of K...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 25, 2006

Fastow Sentencing Set for Tuesday

The sentencing of former Enron Corp. chief financial officer Andrew Fastow may finally take place on Tuesday.But, contrary to many published reports, it’s still not definite that U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt will actually make his decision that day.That’s because he said he will listen to any...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 25, 2006

Zale Cleared by SEC; Names New CFO

Zale Corp. Sunday said the Securities and Exchange Commission has ended a probe of the jewelry retailer and that no enforcement action was recommended.The company announced back in April that the regulator was investigating the timing of certain vendor payments, as well as other matters including...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 25, 2006

Skilling Arrested for Intoxication

Jeffery Skilling came awfully close to going to prison before his scheduled sentencing on October 23.The former Enron chief executive officer was arrested by Houston police early in the morning of September 9 for public intoxication, according to the Houston Chronicle.However, the paper said he w...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 21, 2006

Another Increase in Compliance Costs

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is often blamed for a dearth of accountants, and their new found leverage to demand more money from their employers. The Act has also given rise a boost to another corporate denizen: compliance and ethics officers, who increasingly are being invited into the executive suite...

By Sarah Johnson • Sept. 21, 2006

Gen Re, AIG Execs Indicted

Four former senior executives of General Re—including its former chief financial officer–and one former senior executive of American International Group were indicted for their participation in a fraudulent scheme to manipulate AIG’s financial statements.The announcement was made on Wednesday by ...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 20, 2006

Creditors Can Sue Dead Enron Exec

A judge has ruled that the estate of a former Enron executive who committed suicide is fair game for creditors.U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Arthur Gonzalez said in a recent ruling that the creditors can try to recover $1.3 million from the family of former Vice Chairman Cliff Baxter, who died of a self-...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 20, 2006

Former Ahold CFO Pleads Guilty

The former chief financial officer of U.S. Foodservice Inc, a unit of Royal Ahold NV, pleaded guilty earlier this month for his role in the Dutch retailer’s financial scandal several years ago, according to the Associated Press.Michael Resnick will face up to five years in prison when he is sente...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 19, 2006

Former Enron ES Exec Sent to Prison

Another former Enron executive is headed to prison.David Delainey, who ran the company’s retail energy unit, Enron Energy Services, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison after previously pleading guilty to insider trading, said the Associated Press. Before joining EES, Delainey ran Enro...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 18, 2006

Former Willbros Boss Admits Bribery

A former employee of Willbros Group, an energy-services company, has reportedly pleaded guilty to violating antibribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and has agreed to settle charges against him by the Securities and Exchange Commission.On Thursday, the Department of Justice sai...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 15, 2006

Former Enron Finance Exec Avoids Prison

A former Enron assistant treasurer has escaped a potential prison sentence for his role in the onetime energy giant’s fraud. Timothy DeSpain, who pleaded guilty nearly two years ago to conspiracy to commit securities fraud, was sentenced to four years of probation and a $10,000 fine, according to...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 15, 2006

Breeden To Oversee Adelphia Payout

Former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Richard Breeden has been hired to administer the process of compensating the victims of Adelphia Communications’ fraud, according to an announcement made by Michael Garcia, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.In April...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 14, 2006

Senator Takes on DoJ’s Thompson Memo

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) plans to introduce legislation that would prevent federal prosecutors from encouraging companies to cut off attorney fees or to waive their attorney-client privilege in corporate criminal cases, according to several sources.Specter made this announcement during a contin...

By Sarah Johnson • Sept. 14, 2006

More Shareholders Back Green Schemes

Social issues are gaining ground among the governance set.More than one-quarter of the 179 social policy proposals voted on by shareholders this year received at least 20 percent support, according to data compiled through August 2006 by Proxy Governance Inc. This compares with just 12 percent of...

By Marie Leone • Sept. 13, 2006

Senate Urged to Fix Thompson Memo

At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday, witnesses ranging from corporate attorneys to U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Tom Donohue urged lawmakers to take action against the provisions of the Department of Justice’s so-called Thompson Memorandum.Written in 2003, the DoJ memo says that ...

By Sarah Johnson • Sept. 12, 2006

Former HealthSouth CFO Gets Three Years

A federal judge has sentenced former HealthSouth CFO Michael Martin to 36 months in prison, according to Reuters. It was the third time Martin has been sentenced for his role in the company’s $2.7 billion accounting scandal. The first time around, when he was sentenced to five months probation...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 12, 2006

Freddie Mac Thinks DOJ Probe’s Over

Freddie Mac says it thinks that the Justice Department is no longer investigating the company and the issues related to its massive accounting scandal, according to press reports.Company spokesman David Palombi told the Washington Post that the U.S. attorney’s office hasn’t contacted the company...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 12, 2006

CEO Not a College Grad, R.H. Donnelley Says

R.H. Donnelley confirmed that two press releases regarding the background of chief executive officer David C. Swanson incorrectly described Swanson’s education.The publisher of the yellow pages said Swanson did attend St. Cloud State University, from 1973 to 1976, but he did not earn a degree.The...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 11, 2006

Ex-CFO Helps Healthsouth Fight Scrushy

A former finance chief for HealthSouth is helping the company fight former CEO Richard Scrushy’s claims against the company for $35 million in legal fees, according to The Birmingham News, citing court filings.Mike Martin, who on Tuesday will be resentenced for his role in HealthSouth’s massive a...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 11, 2006

Judge Dismisses Suit Against Visteon

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Visteon and four current and former executives, including two finance executives, according to Bloomberg News.Visteon was sued in February 2005 after it restated earnings. Shareholders alleged that certain company executives failed to disclose the r...

By Stephen Taub • Sept. 8, 2006