Though 2003 brought three of the largest shareholder class action settlements of all time, researchers at NERA Economic Consulting have found that Sarbanes-Oxley has had “no statistically significant impact” on class action filings, settlement values or recovery rates. Buckberg According to the research, led by Dr. Elaine Buckberg, all those key metrics have remained flat […]
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Posted inFrom the Archive
Xerox Executive Joins Board Of American Express
Burns $25.8 billion American Express recently announced that Ursula Burns, senior corporate vice president of business group operations with Xerox, has been elected to its board of directors. Named by Fortune magazine as one of America’s “most powerful black executives” in 2002, Burns has been with $15.7 billion Xerox since 1980 in a variety of […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
First Whistleblower Regains Job Under Sarbanes-Oxley
The chief financial officer of a puny bank in a rural Virginia town appears to be the first individual to get back his job under the new whistleblower rules mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. On Jan. 28, Stephen L. Purcell, Administrative Law Judge for the Department of Labor, published an order that David Welch be […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
$8.5 Billion Cadbury Schweppes Appoints New CFO
Hanna UK-based confectionery and beverages company Cadbury Schweppes recently named Ken Hanna as CFO and executive director. He is currently an operating partner at Compass Partners International, a private equity firm. Hanna, who replaces the retiring David Kappler, has held a string of financial positions at companies including Coopers & Lybrand, Black & Decker, and […]
Posted inInternal Controls
23 Internal Control Disclosures In January
According to a review of regulatory filings during the first month of 2004, 23 companies disclosed material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in internal controls. That number is nearly double the 14 similar disclosures made during the prior month of December 2003. Eleven companies made such disclosures in November 2003. (See box at right for prior […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Deere & Co. CEO Joins Board Of $67 Billion Verizon
Lane Deere & Co. chairman and CEO Robert Lane was recently elected to the board of telephone giant Verizon Communications, effective March 1. Lane has served as chairman and CEO of the $13.3 billion agricultural and forestry equipment manufacturer since 2000, and prior to that was Deere’s CFO. He is also a trustee for the […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
CEO Bonuses, Restricted Stock Awards Up In Early ’03
An analysis of CEO compensation at S&P 500 companies shows that median salaries grew over 8 percent, and median bonuses grew 45 percent to over $710,000. The analysis, conducted by compensation firm Equilar, Inc. for the first three quarters of 2003, also showed that the size of restricted stock awards grew significantly for CEOs, even […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Accounting Firms Spurn Public Clients; What’s The Impact?
A growing number of accounting firms are choosing to get out of the business of providing auditing work for publicly traded companies. In the past few months alone, at least four regional accounting firms have taken this route. They include Minneapolis-based Larson Allen, the 18th largest accounting firm, according to Bowman’s Accounting Reports. The other […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Ex-SEC Associate Chief Accountant Talks About Auditor Independence
Samuel L. Burke is the former associate chief accountant for the SEC, where he spent three years involved in resolving auditing and independence issues and participating in a variety of rulemaking projects, including the rules strengthening auditor independence that became effective March 31, 2003. Last July, Burke joined PricewaterhouseCoopers as a partner in its national […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Ex-SEC Associate Chief Accountant Talks About Auditor Independence
Samuel L. Burke is the former associate chief accountant for the SEC, where he spent three years involved in resolving auditing and independence issues and participating in a variety of rulemaking projects, including the rules strengthening auditor independence that became effective March 31, 2003. Last July, Burke joined PricewaterhouseCoopers as a partner in its national […]
