Block

June 03, 2008 | Law.com

After nearly two years of litigation, CME Group Inc.'s Chicago Board of Trade and its rival, the Chicago Board Options Exchange, agreed to settle their long-running dispute for roughly $1 billion. A final settlement, which must be approved by CBOE members and the Delaware Chancery Court, would clear the way for the CBOE to demutualize and go public or strike a deal with another exchange.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

March 30, 2006 | Legaltech News

BMC Software, a maker of business management software, said Monday it agreed to buy Israeli diagnostic software maker Identify Software for $150 million in cash. BMC has acquired several companies since 2004, including Marimba, Magic Solutions and KMXperts. Chuck Stern, BMC's vice president of worldwide marketing and communication, said the deal is part of the company's strategy for growth and addresses key customer issues. "The combination of BMC and Identify pushes us ahead of the curve," he said.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

September 10, 2004 | Law.com

A new front has opened in the battle between the business establishment and the Financial Accounting Standards Board over employee stock purchase plans, which typically let workers buy company stock at a 15 percent discount. Business activists ripped FASB's Wednesday vote to limit the discount to 5 percent, but the decision marks a partial retreat for the board, which had initially proposed treating all stock purchase discounts as a compensation expense.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

October 28, 2005 | Law.com

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission, or COSO, issued for public comment Wednesday a draft report that gives small businesses guidance on how to comply with new internal control requirements in a more "cost efficient" and "practical" way. The report's recommendations include broadening the pool of audit committee members, using controls already built into accounting software, leveraging management monitoring and outsourcing some activities.

By Donna Block

2 minute read

December 27, 2006 | Law.com

The Securities and Exchange Commission is changing newly adopted rules governing the disclosure of executive and director compensation. The agency said it is altering the requirements for disclosing the value of stock option awards and giving firms more flexibility in how they report those expenses. The amended rules will give investors a better idea of the compensation earned by an executive or director during a particular reporting period, the SEC explained.

By Donna Block

2 minute read

July 14, 2005 | Law.com

An ex-New York Stock Exchange seat holder is suing the exchange and chief executive John Thain, asserting she never would have sold her seat if Thain had not allegedly hidden the existence of the pending NYSE/Archipelago Holdings merger. Allison Wey sold her seat in March for $1.54 million but claims that less than two months later the seat would have been worth at least a million dollars more. The suit follows on the heels of other recent actions against the NYSE by longtime seatholders.

By Donna Block

2 minute read

December 29, 2006 | Law.com

The SEC's decision to tweak disclosure rules on executive compensation is already under fire from congressional critics. The SEC issued a statement last week saying new rules would lower the amount of total compensation that companies must disclose next year. Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the incoming Democratic chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said Wednesday he is "very disappointed" with the substance of the new rules and with the procedure the SEC used to decide on the changes.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

October 26, 2005 | Law.com

Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. chief executive Robert Greifeld said Monday that the new regulatory regime created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 is discouraging European companies from listing in the United States. However, listings from Asia remain strong, he said. There's been a "bifurcated response to our changing regulatory environment," Greifeld told the National Association of Corporate Directors, but he predicted good regulation and sound business practices will bring listings back.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

January 05, 2006 | Corporate Counsel

The SEC announced a new policy Wednesday on how it will exercise authority and levy corporate fines. Regulators clarified the new policy by announcing two enforcement actions. The first action imposed a $50 million fine on McAfee for allegedly engaging in accounting fraud that benefited the company in making acquisitions. There was no fine in a second settlement with Applix for improperly inflating revenue, but the company agreed to hire an outside consultant to review accounting and sales practices.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

February 16, 2007 | Law.com

The SEC is getting closer to recognizing International Financial Reporting Standards, a move that will cut costs for foreign companies that list in the U.S. Currently such companies may prepare regulatory filings based on IFRS, but have to reconcile their results with the U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. On March 6, the SEC will hold a roundtable on its so-called IFRS road map, which SEC Chairman Christopher Cox said will help "identify both opportunities and speed bumps along the way."

By Donna Block

3 minute read