Updates and Notes
Options Backdating Litigation Update: On June 19, 2006, the Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer law firm initiated a new securities fraud class action lawsuit against Brooks Automation and several of its directors and officers, based on options backdating allegations. With the addition of the Brooks Automation lawsuit, the number of companies named in securities fraud class action lawsuits since the Wall Street Journal's (subscription required) March 18, 2006 article brought widespread attention to options backdating is now up to five. (The four companies previously named are Comverse Technology, United Health Group, Vitesse Semiconductor, and American Tower. The four prior lawsuits were discussed in this previous D & O Diary post.)
In addition to these five, the Consolidated Amended Complaint filed against Brocade Communications alleges misconduct (including backdating) in connection with hiring-related stock option grants. The Brocade Communications complaint was previously discussed in this D & O Diary post.
Thus, according to the D & O Diary’s tally, and counting the Brocade Communications lawsuit, the number of companies sued in securities fraud class action lawsuits based on allegations of improper stock options grant timing now stands at six. The D & O Diary is interested in hearing from readers who are aware of any other lawsuits that this post may have overlooked.
Update: An alert D & O Diary reader has referred me to the securities fraud lawsuit pending against Mercury Interactive. The initial D & O Diary post about options backdating referenced the case pending against Mercury Interactive. The initial securities complaint filed in August 2005 against Mercury Interactive did not emphasize the options backdating allegations, but subsequent events, including in particular, the November 2, 2005 resignation of the company's top three executives because of improper timing practices involving employee stock options, suggest that the centerpiece of the Consolidated Amended Complaint, when filed, will be the options backdating allegations. The Order granting leave to file the Amended Complaint was entered on June 7, 2006, and the Amended Complaint must be filed by the later of 60 days from the Order's date or 21 days after Mecury Interactive files its restated financial statements, but in no event more than 90 days from the Order. Clearly, the securities fraud class action filed against Mercury Interactive involves options backdating allegations, so that case should be "counted" -- which brings the total number of companies sued in securities fraud cases involving options timing to seven, rather than six as previously stated.
In addition to securities fraud class action lawsuits, companies involved in the options backdating investigations are also being named in shareholders' derivative lawsuits. Derivative lawsuits are harder to track because the plaintiffs’ lawyers do not always issue a press release when they file derivative lawsuits. The Weiss & Lurie law firm cast modesty aside in issuing its June 12, 2006 press release about the new shareholders’ derivative lawsuit it has filed against KLA-Tencor. The firm not only announced the new derivative lawsuit, but stated further that it has been retained to investigate possible additional lawsuits against 48 other companies (which companies it identifies in the press release by name and ticker symbol). Not to be outdone, the law firm of Stull, Stull & Brody, in announcing the shareholders' derivative action that it initiated against Computer Sciences Corporation, claims that it is investigating "over 50" companies.
Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Update: As discussed in this prior D & O Diary post, one of the most important legacies of the Enron era may be the Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower protection. Two recent developments increase the likelihood that this statutory provision may become increasingly significant.
On June 9, 2006, in a closely watched case involving the first worker to win protection as a whistleblower under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the U.S. Department of Labor Administrative Review Board held that the whistleblower’s employer must reinstate him to the position he held before he was fired for criticizing the employer’s accounting practices. The decision may be found here. A Washington Post article (registration required) describing the decision can be found here.
Update: CFO.com has a June 28, 2006 post in which it reports that Cardinal Bancshares (the defendant in the whistleblower case described above) has "decided once again to refuse a Department of Labor judge's recommended order to reinstate the bank's former CFO....Instead, the bank holding company plans to wwait and see whether the DoL or [the plaintiff] brings an action against the company in U.S. District Court."
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 22, 2006 decision in a Title VII case could further strengthen the Sarbanes-Oxley Act’s whistleblower protection. The Court held that any adverse actions by an employer – whether in or out of the workplace, and even if they fall short of dismissal or demotion – can be illegal if they would dissuade a “reasonable” employee from filing a discrimination complaint. According to the Wall Street Journal’s (subscription required) June 23, 2006 article discussing the decision, “[w]hile the ruling was in a discrimination complaint, employment lawyers said it is likely to influence retaliation cases of all sorts, including age bias and whistleblower claims under the Sarbanes Oxley law.”
Outside Director Liability: After outside directors of Enron and WorldCom were forced to contribute to the class action settlements out of their own assets without recourse to insurance or indemnity, a great debate ensued about whether the settlements represented a trend or were mere artifacts of unique cases. A scholarly overview of outside director liability by Michael Klausner of the Stanford Law School summarized in the June 2006 issue of the PLUS Journal (registration required) statistically examines the historical evidence and concludes that outside directors personal exposure is limited to “very narrow exceptions.” The Enron and WorldCom settlements may, according to Professor Klausner, be understood as the outcomes of “exceptional scenarios.” He further comments that to protect themselves from their remote exposure to liability, outside directors should be sure that their companies have a “state-of-the-art D & O Policy with appropriate severability, bankruptcy and other protections.”
In addition to these five, the Consolidated Amended Complaint filed against Brocade Communications alleges misconduct (including backdating) in connection with hiring-related stock option grants. The Brocade Communications complaint was previously discussed in this D & O Diary post.
Thus, according to the D & O Diary’s tally, and counting the Brocade Communications lawsuit, the number of companies sued in securities fraud class action lawsuits based on allegations of improper stock options grant timing now stands at six. The D & O Diary is interested in hearing from readers who are aware of any other lawsuits that this post may have overlooked.
Update: An alert D & O Diary reader has referred me to the securities fraud lawsuit pending against Mercury Interactive. The initial D & O Diary post about options backdating referenced the case pending against Mercury Interactive. The initial securities complaint filed in August 2005 against Mercury Interactive did not emphasize the options backdating allegations, but subsequent events, including in particular, the November 2, 2005 resignation of the company's top three executives because of improper timing practices involving employee stock options, suggest that the centerpiece of the Consolidated Amended Complaint, when filed, will be the options backdating allegations. The Order granting leave to file the Amended Complaint was entered on June 7, 2006, and the Amended Complaint must be filed by the later of 60 days from the Order's date or 21 days after Mecury Interactive files its restated financial statements, but in no event more than 90 days from the Order. Clearly, the securities fraud class action filed against Mercury Interactive involves options backdating allegations, so that case should be "counted" -- which brings the total number of companies sued in securities fraud cases involving options timing to seven, rather than six as previously stated.
In addition to securities fraud class action lawsuits, companies involved in the options backdating investigations are also being named in shareholders' derivative lawsuits. Derivative lawsuits are harder to track because the plaintiffs’ lawyers do not always issue a press release when they file derivative lawsuits. The Weiss & Lurie law firm cast modesty aside in issuing its June 12, 2006 press release about the new shareholders’ derivative lawsuit it has filed against KLA-Tencor. The firm not only announced the new derivative lawsuit, but stated further that it has been retained to investigate possible additional lawsuits against 48 other companies (which companies it identifies in the press release by name and ticker symbol). Not to be outdone, the law firm of Stull, Stull & Brody, in announcing the shareholders' derivative action that it initiated against Computer Sciences Corporation, claims that it is investigating "over 50" companies.
Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Update: As discussed in this prior D & O Diary post, one of the most important legacies of the Enron era may be the Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower protection. Two recent developments increase the likelihood that this statutory provision may become increasingly significant.
On June 9, 2006, in a closely watched case involving the first worker to win protection as a whistleblower under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the U.S. Department of Labor Administrative Review Board held that the whistleblower’s employer must reinstate him to the position he held before he was fired for criticizing the employer’s accounting practices. The decision may be found here. A Washington Post article (registration required) describing the decision can be found here.
Update: CFO.com has a June 28, 2006 post in which it reports that Cardinal Bancshares (the defendant in the whistleblower case described above) has "decided once again to refuse a Department of Labor judge's recommended order to reinstate the bank's former CFO....Instead, the bank holding company plans to wwait and see whether the DoL or [the plaintiff] brings an action against the company in U.S. District Court."
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 22, 2006 decision in a Title VII case could further strengthen the Sarbanes-Oxley Act’s whistleblower protection. The Court held that any adverse actions by an employer – whether in or out of the workplace, and even if they fall short of dismissal or demotion – can be illegal if they would dissuade a “reasonable” employee from filing a discrimination complaint. According to the Wall Street Journal’s (subscription required) June 23, 2006 article discussing the decision, “[w]hile the ruling was in a discrimination complaint, employment lawyers said it is likely to influence retaliation cases of all sorts, including age bias and whistleblower claims under the Sarbanes Oxley law.”
Outside Director Liability: After outside directors of Enron and WorldCom were forced to contribute to the class action settlements out of their own assets without recourse to insurance or indemnity, a great debate ensued about whether the settlements represented a trend or were mere artifacts of unique cases. A scholarly overview of outside director liability by Michael Klausner of the Stanford Law School summarized in the June 2006 issue of the PLUS Journal (registration required) statistically examines the historical evidence and concludes that outside directors personal exposure is limited to “very narrow exceptions.” The Enron and WorldCom settlements may, according to Professor Klausner, be understood as the outcomes of “exceptional scenarios.” He further comments that to protect themselves from their remote exposure to liability, outside directors should be sure that their companies have a “state-of-the-art D & O Policy with appropriate severability, bankruptcy and other protections.”
posted by Kevin LaCroix at 8:05 AM
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