Qwest Communications is the latest among a growing number of companies to agree to significantly alter its corporate governance as part of a settlement agreement in a shareholder lawsuit—but the novel pact received scant attention in the national press and contains several unusual provisions.
The embattled telecom company agreed to shell out $25 million to settle five shareholder lawsuits accusing the company and 16 former and current executives and directors, including former Chief Executive Officer Joe Nacchio and founder and billionaire Philip Anschutz, of making millions of dollars from trading with illegal insider information.
