By Securities Docket on September 3, 2009, 11:51 am
Court orders 24 months in prison, $6.3 million in restitution and $6.3 million in forfeiture.
Posted in Criminal | Tagged Options Backdating, Sentencing
By Securities Docket on June 1, 2009, 10:01 am
Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. (VTSS) announced today that the Staff of the SEC has agreed to recommend to the Commission a proposed settlement that would resolve the SEC’s investigation into historical stock option practices and certain other accounting irregularities at Vitesse. Under the proposed settlement, Vitesse would pay a $3 million civil penalty and consent to an [...]
Posted in SEC | Tagged Features, Options Backdating, Settlements
By Securities Docket on May 18, 2009, 3:50 pm
There were rumblings near the end of 2008 that the SEC’s interest in options backdating was winding down, but the last few days have seen a new surge in such cases. On May 14, the SEC filed a settled backdating enforcement action against Gary A. Ray, the former VP of human resources at L.A.-based homebuilder [...]
Posted in SEC | Tagged Features, Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on May 15, 2009, 2:56 pm
On May 14, the SEC filed a settled enforcement action against Gary A. Ray, the former VP of human resources at L.A.-based homebuilder KB Home, Inc., alleging that Ray used hindsight to pick advantageous grant dates for KB Home’s annual stock option grants in order to enrich himself and others at KB Home. The SEC [...]
Posted in SEC | Tagged Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on April 15, 2009, 7:02 am
Of the eight general counsels pursued by the SEC or prosecutors for alleged improper stock options backdating, four are still fighting charges, three have settled or pleaded guilty and one was acquitted, NLJ reports. The lone acquittal to date has been Kent Roberts, the former general counsel for McAfee Inc., who was acquitted of criminal [...]
Posted in Criminal | Tagged Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on March 20, 2009, 6:34 am
On Thursday, the SEC dropped its options backdating case against Kent Roberts, former general counsel of McAfee Inc. The Recorder reports that the action followed an unsuccessful criminal case against Roberts in October. Roberts’ attorney, William Freeman of Cooley Godward, called the dismissal of the case a “complete vindication for Kent,” who did not pay [...]
Posted in SEC | Tagged Dismissals, Lawyers, Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on March 10, 2009, 6:43 am
Bruce E. Karatz, the former CEO of KB Home, has been indicted and charged with 20 counts of defrauding the Los Angeles homebuilder and its shareholders by awarding himself and others with millions of dollars worth of undisclosed backdated stock options.The NLJ reports that in the indictment returned on Thursday, Karatz is charged with concealing [...]
Posted in Criminal | Tagged Financial Fraud, Indictments, Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on February 6, 2009, 5:18 pm
Four directors of Canadian company Research in Motion have agreed to settle a probe by Canadian regulators over the backdating of stock options by paying a combined $92 million. The settling individuals include the company’s joint CEOs, its president, its CFO, and other board members. The Register reports that the $92 million is broken down [...]
Posted in Global | Tagged Canada, Options Backdating, Settlements
By Securities Docket on January 22, 2009, 6:07 am
The Ontario Securities Commission is seeking a penalty as high as $100 million from the top two executives of Research In Motion Ltd. in connection with their roles in a stock option accounting controversy. The Globe and Mail reports that the OSC is in “advanced discussions” with lawyers for RIM’s co-chief executive officers, Jim Balsillie [...]
Posted in Global | Tagged Canada, Options Backdating
By Securities Docket on December 16, 2008, 4:44 pm
Gary A. Ray, a former Vice President and head of Human Resources at KB Home Corp., has agreed to plead guilty to a conspiracy in 2006 to obstruct justice in connection with an internal investigation into stock option backdating at KB. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California announced today that [...]
Posted in Criminal | Tagged Guilty Pleas, Obstruction, Options Backdating
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