MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
April 19 – April 26, 2007 Edition
Rosen Resigns
B&N Board Over
Stock Option Errors
NEW YORK, NY/4/24/07-Attorney Michael N. Rosen of the law firm Bryan Cave has resigned as secretary of the Barnes & Noble Board of Directors, following a report that concluded he was partly to blame for improper backdating and misdating of $45.5 million in B&N stock options during the past decade.
A special committee formed by the company to examine the issue concluded several weeks ago that Rosen had given executives erroneous information about the dating of stock options, an allegation that Rosen has denied. The committee added, however, that it did not find any fraud or misconduct by Rosen or other individuals.
Barnes & Noble is among more than 100 companies being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission for inappropriate stock option practices. So far, the investigation has lead to criminal charges against at least ten companies. The U.S. Attorneys Office in New York has also subpoenaed Barnes & Noble about its stock options practices.
According to Shelf Awareness, the companys own investigation has cost it between $4 million and $6 million.
