2 sentenze sul Sarbanes Oxley

[FaGal]

Two Court Decisions Clarify Sarbanes-Oxley Application

BestWire Services via NewsEdge Corporation : Two years after it was signed into law, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is the subject of two recent federal court decisions that have set precedents for how the sweeping set of corporate-governance reforms likely will be applied.

In the first case, a federal appellate court the week of Dec. 6 held that investors alleging corporate fraud can't sue retroactively. In the second case, a federal judge for the first time ruled on the constitutionality of Sarbanes-Oxley in a criminal case.

The first case stemmed from the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley law's extension of the time investors have to file a lawsuit before the statute of limitations expires. Previously, investors who suspected corporate fraud had a year to sue within the date of the fraud's discovery or three years within its occurrence. Sarbanes-Oxley extended those expiration dates to two and five years, respectively.

Several plaintiffs, filing in U.S. District Courts, used that 2002 extension to file suit on claims that had expired during the pre-Sarbanes-Oxley climate. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled on Dec. 6 that investors may not apply that provision retroactively, meaning that if the deadline had passed under before Sarbanes-Oxley took effect, the suit may not be filed.

In the second case, a U.S. District Court in Birmingham, Ala., on Nov. 23 rejected a defense argument that a top insurance executive couldn't be indicted, in part, on Sarbanes-Oxley violations.

HealthSouth Chief Executive Officer Richard Scrushy, who faces fraud charges stemming from accusations he overstated HealthSouth's earnings by $2.7 billion, was the first company executive to be charged under Sarbanes-Oxley (BestWire, Dec. 4, 2003). His attorneys had argued that the act is unconstitutionally vague and that Scrushy shouldn't be indicted on any Sarbanes-Oxley-related charges.

U.S. District Judge Karon Bowdre, in what she said from the bench was the first ruling of its kind, rejected Scrushy's arguments and upheld the constitutionality of the 2002 law.

More than a dozen former executives of HealthSouth (NYSE:HLSH) were ensnared in accusations that the company inflated its earnings from 1996 to 2002. Once those revelations became public in March 2003, HealthSouth and Scrushy parted ways. Federal authorities soon afterward indicted Scrushy and other HealthSouth executives. Fifteen since have pleaded guilty to involvement in accounting fraud.

(By Chris Grier, Washington bureau manager, BestWeek: Chris.Grier@ambest.com) .end (paragraph)<<BestWire Services -- 12/09/04>>