Accounting News Roundup: Olympus Stays Listed; Are the Top Firms Washed Up?; Santorum's Wortest Tax Plan

In Fight Over Piracy Bills, New Economy Rises Against Old [NYT]
When the powerful world of old media mobilized to win passage of an online antipiracy bill, it marshaled the reliable giants of K Street — the United States Chamber of Commerce, the Recording Industry Association of America and, of course, the motion picture lobby, with its new chairman, former Senator Christopher J. Dodd, the Connecticut Democrat and an insider’s insider. Yet on Wednesday this formidable old guard was forced to make way for the new as Web powerhouses backed by Internet activists rallied opposition to the legislation through Internet blackouts and cascading criticism, sending an unmistakable message to lawmakers grappling with new media issues: Don’t mess with the Internet.

Kodak Files for Bankruptcy Protection [WSJ]
Eastman Kodak Co. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York early Thursday morning, after the struggling photography icon ran short on cash needed to fund a long-sputtering turnaround. The storied former blue chip said it had secured $950 million in financing from Citigroup Inc. to help keep it afloat during bankruptcy proceedings. The company also named Dominic Di Napoli, a vice chairman at FTI Consulting Inc., as its chief restructuring officer to help steer the company through bankruptcy court. The 131-year-old company struggled for decades to cope with the emergence of competitors in its film business and the rise of digital technology. Its final pivot toward transforming into a company that sells printers proved too costly amid declining film sales and expensive obligations to retirees.

Olympus Is Likely to Remain Listed [WSJ]

The Tokyo Stock Exchange is expected to keep Olympus Corp. shares listed, people familiar with the matter said Thursday, a move that would clear one of the many hurdles the company faces in recovering from a $1.5 billion loss-hiding scandal. The exchange hasn't found any "material impact" from the accounting irregularities at the Japanese maker of cameras and medical imaging equipment to warrant expulsion from the market, although it will likely slap a ¥10 million ($130,000) fine on the company for falsifying financial documents, the people said. A final decision on the company's listing status is likely to be made Friday, the people added.

Trial Set for Financier Accused in Decades-Long Ponzi Scheme [NYT]

A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that R. Allen Stanford, the Texas financier accused of defrauding thousands of investors in a $7 billion Ponzi scheme, will go on trial next week, nearly three years after his arrest. At the hearing, Mr. Stanford’s lawyers said he would testify at the trial, giving him an opportunity to describe how he was beaten so seriously by a fellow inmate while in custody in Texas that his memory and ability to prepare for trial was impaired. United States District Judge David Hittner in recent weeks ruled against motions by Mr. Stanford’s lawyers that their client was not mentally competent to stand trial and that the trial should be postponed because they had not had enough time to prepare a defense. “My finding still remains that he is competent and ready to go,” Judge Hittner said Wednesday.

More cracks found in Airbus A380 wings [Reuters]
Hold off on that order.

Analysis: Santorum tax plan adds $1.3 trillion to deficit [OTM/The Hill]
Rick Santorum’s tax proposals would add well over $1 trillion to the deficit in 2015, a new nonpartisan analysis has found, among the highest of the GOP presidential candidates. The Tax Policy Center found that Santorum’s plan would add some $1.3 trillion to the federal debt in 2015, if the Bush tax cuts and other provisions expire as scheduled. If current policies were continued, Santorum’s plan would boost the budget deficit by $900 billion. As they did with his fellow GOP candidates, the Tax Policy Center found that Santorum’s tax plan would be a boon to most wealthy taxpayers.

Are the Top 100 Firms Past Their Prime? [CPAT]

Derek Jeters, if you will.

Accounting News Roundup: CFOs, Staff Are Getting Worn Down by Guidance; Miami Forensic Accountant to Plead Guilty; Big 4 In Pari Delicto Defense Strategy | 03.10.10

Caleb Newquist
March 10, 2010

• A Growing Contagion: Accounting Fatigue Syndrome [CFO Blog]
Anyone getting worn out from all the guidance that is coming from the alphabet soup of regulators? You’re not alone and there appears to be an epidemic, something that CFO Blog has deemed “Accounting Fatigue Syndrome.” The long/short of it is that things are only going to get more complex as FASB and IASB continue to converge their rules and guidance continues to come out of both rule making bodies.

“Like many finance executives, Terry Lillis, CFO of Principal Financial Group, is tired. The constant stream of guidance from regulators and accounting standard-setters — plus the expected inflow of more to come over the next few years — has created “huge accounting fatigue” among his finance staff”

What’s the solution to AFS? How about just getting out of the biz altogether? “While the panelists gave no hope to CFOs who wish the standard-setters would either slow down or cut back on their agenda, they did offer one tip for ending accounting fatigue. ‘If I were a CFO, the first thing I would do is look at my early-retirement provisions,’ quipped J. Edward Grossman, a Crowe Horwath partner.”

• High-profile Miami accountant Lew Freeman to plead guilty to fraud [Miami Herald]
A couple of weeks ago we told you about “go-to” forensic accountant turned swindler Lewis Freeman and his legal trouble.

Today he is expected to plead guilty in Miami to embezzling $2.6 million from his clients. Prosecutors have alleged that Freeman, “wrote 162 unauthorized checks to himself totaling about $6 million from the accounts of five failed businesses once under his company’s control, but put back about half of the money.” Freeman has been cooperating with investigators since his arrest but still may face 10 – 20 years in prison.

• In Pari Delicto: Are Auditors Equally At Fault In The Big Fraud Cases? [Re: the Auditors]
Francine tackles PwC and KPMG’s defense strategy involving in pari delicto to avoid their roles in fraud cases.

The way I see it, the in pari delicto doctrine is being used like a pair of needle nosed pliers by audit firm defense lawyers to diffuse a bomb – huge liability for some of the biggest frauds in history. The in pari delicto doctrine attempts to pull the auditors’ tails from the fire by excusing any of their guilty acts due to the approval of those acts by potentially equally guilty executives.