“None of us likes to hear our company talked about in this way. But I do not have to tell you that the alleged activity is not a reflection of who we are or what we stand for—not now and not then.”

—Jeff Gearhart, general counsel of Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart executives have pledged to conduct an “aggressive investigation” into allegations that employees of its Mexican subsidiary paid officials more than $24 million in bribes, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

“We would not condone that behavior because it is patently illegal. We don't believe that is taking place. In the unlikely event that it is, that is a state and local issue.”

—Mark Dopp, general counsel of the American Meat Institute

Just as the “pink slime” furor began to die down, the meat industry has been hit with media reports of “meat glue,” enzymes that processors use to bind together smaller pieces of meat. Industry officials deny that restaurants are repacking lesser cuts of meat into higher-priced steaks, adding that—despite their unsavory nickname—transglutaminase and beef fibrin are safe, naturally occurring enzymes.

“Today's agreement with Facebook enables us to recoup over half of our costs while achieving our goals from the AOL auction.”

—Brad Smith, general counsel of Microsoft

On April 23, Microsoft Corp. announced that Facebook will pay $550 million for a portion of Microsoft's recently acquired AOL patents. Facebook, which is preparing for its initial public offering later this month, also is embroiled in a patent infringement lawsuit with Yahoo!.