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Another Official Snared in Abramoff’s Web
Former superlobbyist Jack Abramoff spread himself around Washington D.C., and those contacts resulted in yet another official entering a guilty plea arising from their relationship. Former Deputy Interior Secretary J. Steven Griles entered a guilty plea to one count of obstruction of justice for lying to a Senate committee investigating Abramoff’s lobbying activities. Griles, the…
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Building Pressure From the U.S. Attorney Firing Investigations
That "overblown personnel matter" involving the firing of eight U.S. Attorneys heads into another week of tension between Congress and the White House, with Attorney General Alberto Gonzales seemingly carried forward in its wake. The House and Senate Judiciary Committees authorized the issuance of subpoenas to five Presidential aides, including Karl Rove and Harriet Miers,…
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Blame It on Sarbanes-Oxley
David Stockman went on the offensive regarding his possible (even likely) indictment on charges related to his tenure as CEO of auto parts supplier Collins & Aikman. A story in the Wall Street Journal (here) quotes Stockman as asserting that any case against him would be a "crimeless prosecution" — a phrase I’ve never heard…
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Political Telephone Harassment Conviction Reversed
The First Circuit reversed the conviction of James Tobin, the former New England Regional Director for the Republican National Committee, for his role in a scheme to jam telephones used by the Democrat party on election day in November 2002 to get out the vote. Tobin was convicted on conspiracy and aiding and abetting charges…
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Will the Defendants Maintain a United Front in the Hollinger Trial?
Although the vast majority of the media attention has focused on Lord Conrad Black’s role in the alleged looting at Hollinger International, there are three other defendants on trial who may have a significant impact on its outcome: former CFO Jack Boultbee, former executive vice president Peter Atkinson, and former general counsel Mark Kipnis. In…
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Stockman Looks Like the Next Former CEO Charged
Former Congressman and Reagan Administration budget wunderkind David Stockman could be facing federal charges shortly related to his time as CEO of Collins & Aikman, a now-bankrupt auto industry supplier. Stockman made a splash in the early part of the century when his investment fund, Heartland Industrial Partners, began rolling-up auto suppliers that resulted in…
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There Goes $1.58 Billion
Investor Ronald Perelman won $1.58 billion in compensatory and punitive damages from investment bank Morgan Stanley on a fraud claim in 2005 in large part because the firm’s e-mail production was so bad that the trial judge finally ordered a partial default judgment as a sanction for discovery abuses. The case arose from Morgan Stanley’s…
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Black and Nacchio Trials In Full Swing
The jury selection is complete, the opening statements made, so the trials of former CEOs Conrad Black (newspaper publisher Hollinger International) and Joseph Nacchio (telecom Qwest Communications) are now moving ahead with the first witnesses being called by the government. Criminal trials, perhaps most particularly white collar crime cases, can be rather boring, unlike the…
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Will Bush Use Executive Privilege?
It is clear that the U.S. Attorney "firings" is not going away, as some may have thought. The latest is Congress authorizing subpoenas to white house personel (e.g. Karl Rove) (see N.Y.Times, Wall Street Jrl, and Washington Post). The President’s response – (see Wall Street Jrl here). Should a showdown result between the legislature and…
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Conrad Black Trial
After a one day delay, the trial of Conrad Black proceeded to opening statements. (See Chicago Tribune here). Canadian Press is following this trial closely. (See Toronto Globe & Mail here) (esp)
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