Taking a Bite out of Apple
.jpg)
A month or so ago, Kendra discussed the class action bar's increasing interest in options backdating. I suggested, a bit facetiously, that the next significant backdating case may arise in connection with Apple's backdating of options granted Steve Jobs. So much for facetious. Bloomberg reports today that the SEC is likely to sue Apple's former General Counsel, Nancy Heinan, in connection with the backdated options:
The securities regulator will likely sue Heinen this week for allegedly backdating an Oct. 19, 2001, stock option grant to Jobs for 7.5 million shares, and an earlier grant made to Jobs' executive team members, including Heinen, on Jan. 17, 2001, her attorney Miles Ehrlich said.
The Justice Department also is investigating stock option awards at Apple, maker of the Macintosh computer and iPod music player, though ``there would be no basis for the filing of criminal charges'' against Heinen, said another defense attorney, Cristina Arguedas, of Arguedas, Cassman & Headley in Berkeley, California.
Apple, based in Cupertino, California, would be the largest company with current or former executives sued by the SEC over claims they helped fake stock-option grant dates. The company said in December that 6,428 option grants from 1997 to 2002 were backdated, including one to Jobs marked as approved at a fictional board meeting.
Heinen's attorneys (naturally) deny any wrongdoing.
