Former chief executive Dennis Kozlowski and former finance chief Mark Swartz -- the faces of the scandal that nearly ruined Tyco International Ltd. -- have appealed their June 2005 convictions. The men were found guilty on 22 counts of grand larceny, falsifying business records, securities fraud and conspiracy in connection with looting the company, and have been serving prison sentences of up to 25 years. Prosecutors said the men gave themselves more than $150 million in illegal bonuses and loans, in addition to manipulating the company's stock price and making in millions more through illegal stock sales. In separate filings with the appellate division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, lawyers for Kozlowski said that Tyco's pay-for-performance pay system entitled Kozlowski to his extraordinary compensation and gave their client leeway to spend the company’s dollars. Lawyers for Swartz questioned whether there was enough evidence to support charges that he took money that had not been authorized by Tyco’s directors, as well as requesting that the length of Swartz’s sentence be reconsidered. Tyco is in the process of reorganizing into three stand-alone companies, a move which should be completed by the first quarter of 2007.
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The Digital Business Networks Alliance, a Federal Reserve-sponsored group, announced the first successful transmission of an electronic invoice.
March 27 -
Besides a negative outlook on work-life balance, comp and career development questions are driving people away from the auditing profession.
March 27 -
Is the age of the bookkeeper coming to an end? Is the payroll specialist an endangered species? Are the days of the tax preparer who focuses on basic 1040s numbered?
March 27 -
The jobs that will become a lot less common in accounting in the future are those that involve the inputting and manipulation of data for routine and repeatable tasks.
March 27 -
Does your job primarily involve data entry and routine processes? If so, it may be time for a pivot.
March 27 -
An employee stock ownership plan may be the answer as the accounting profession faces a talent shortage.
March 27