Federal prosecutors recently settled two cases involving violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, underscoring the government’s growing interest in prosecuting such cases, as well as the evolving nature of the charges themselves and how they are resolved. Most notably, Norwegian oil giant Statoil, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange, confessed to bribing […]
Stephen Taub
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Profits (And Losses) Of Hedge-Fund Activism
It’s no secret that a growing number of hedge funds have “gone activist,” pushing for asset sales, spinoffs, recapitalizations, special dividends, and other perceived shareholder-enhancing moves. Numerous hedge-fund players, however, take their activist campaign a big step further: battling for a seat on a company’s board of directors, in the hope that their influence will […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Sorting Out SOX Whistleblower Protections
Recent developments involving the first two whistleblower cases to go to trial under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act have sent mixed signals to individuals who might feel they were unfairly punished for alerting authorities to possible fraud, as well as to companies that might be targets of such complaints. In early October, a U.S. district judge decided […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Gift And Entertainment Rule Languishing
It’s been nine months since the New York Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers sought comments on similar recommendations related to how companies treat gifts and entertainment with their clients. So far, however, the rules have not been adopted officially. “There is still no news,” confirms a spokesman for the oldest and […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Can No News Be Good News For Probes?
When home mortgage giant Freddie Mac announced last month that the Justice Department’s three-year probe into its accounting practices would not result in criminal charges, company spokespersons had to tread carefully while delivering the good news. “It is Freddie Mac’s understanding that it is the practice of the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Hedge Funds Still Edge Closer To Regulation
This summer, when a federal appeals court overturned a rule instituted by the Securities and Exchange Commission to force hedge funds to register with the SEC and disclose details of their size and operations, disappointed critics saw it as a blow to lifting the veil on this secretive niche of the financial services world. The […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Court, SEC Revive Proxy Access Rule
Proxy access, an idea anathema to most corporate boardrooms, has roared back to the forefront of corporate governance debates with a key court ruling in favor of shareholders and looming new regulatory hearings on the topic. With unusual swiftness for a governmental agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission last week scheduled an open meeting for […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Court, SEC Revive Proxy Access Rule
Proxy access, an idea anathema to most corporate boardrooms, has roared back to the forefront of corporate governance debates with a key court ruling in favor of shareholders and looming new regulatory hearings on the topic. With unusual swiftness for a governmental agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission last week scheduled an open meeting for […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Penalty Declined: SEC Often Takes Nothing
The Securities and Exchange Commission seemed to bring closure the largest corporate fraud scandal in history in July, when it announced final civil settlements with former WorldCom Chief Financial Officer Scott Sullivan and five other executives at the former telecommunications company. At the time, Sullivan had agreed to be liable for $10 million in disgorgement […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Heinz Battle Offers Primer On Proxy Fights
Ketchup can often be a messy business. This month’s clash for control of Heinz Co. was no different. All summer long, corporate governance activists have watched the $8.6 billion food giant wage a vicious proxy fight against the Trian Group, a hedge fund headed up by financiers Nelson Peltz and Peter May. The battle reached […]