Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.law,americast.usa-today.law From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: law Tue, Oct 13 1992 Date: Tue, 13 Oct 92 05:19:04 EDT Message-ID: 10-13 0000 DECISIONLINE: Business Law USA TODAY Update Oct. 13, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network SEC TO VOTE ON RULES THURSDAY: The Securities and Exchange Commission will decide Thursday whether to keep rules that say 10 or more shareholders who plan to discuss corporate voting issues must first obtain government approval. Proposed SEC rule changes call for fewer restrictions on communication among shareholders as well as greater disclosure on executive compensation. SEC RULES TO BE READY BY SPRING: There's no guarantee the Securities and Exchange Commission will adopt proposals to ease restrictions on shareholder communication Thursday. But SEC Chairman Richard Breeden has promised that proxy revisions will be ready for the annual shareholder meetings next spring. Changes include letting shareholders have written communication without prior approval and talk without any approval. AT&T DISPUTE IS SETTLED: AT&T and Mitsubishi International Corp. Monday agreed to a settlement of a dispute involving remote access toll fraud. Mitsubishi sued AT&T in 1991 over not providing adequate safeguards to keep outsiders from making unauthorized long-distance calls on the company's internal switchboard. Each will dismiss suits against the other company. FIRMS TO WORK AGAINST FRAUD: Both AT&T and Mitsubishi Monday agreed to dismiss lawsuits against each other in a remote access toll fraud case. As part of the settlement, the companies said Monday, they will work together to help protect Mitsubishi from other instances of toll fraud. Other details of the settlement were not disclosed. HUDSON WINS SUIT AGAINST CHOICE: Hudson Hotels Corp., a subsidiary of Microtel Franchise and Development Corp. said Monday it was awarded a $2.5 million judgment in a suit against Choice International. The award said Robert Hazard, president of Choice, developed that rival chain after being shown the Microtel concept in confidence. Microtel is based on low cost, smaller rooms and scaled-down amenities. CONTINENTAL OFFER IS WITHDRAWN: An employee group bidding for 52% of Continental Airlines withdrew its $425 million offer Monday because it says Continental refused to provide financial information on the Denver hub. Benefit Concepts New York specializes in employee stockownership plans. It says it needed the information to make a viable bid. Benefit Concepts was one of five bidders for bankrupt Continental. TRADE TALKS END DEADLOCKED: U.S. and European trade officials ended two days of talks in Brussels Monday without making a breakthrough. But officials said progress has been made and the gap between the two sides over farm subsidies has narrowed. German Economics Minister Juergen Moellemann says he believes the European Community and the USA could reach agreement as soon as this month. OCEAN CASUALTY IS LIQUIDATED: Ocean Casualty Insurance Co., a Miami insurer primarily selling auto insurance, was ordered liquidated by a Leon Circuit Court judge Monday. Leon Circuit Judge Ralph Smith ordered the liquidation and named the state insurance department as receiver of the company. State Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher said claims will be paid by the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association. INSURER BEING INVESTIGATED: An Atlanta insurance entrepreneur is under investigation in five states for possibly having shipped tens of millions of dollars of premiums to Swiss bank accounts. Alan Teale's lawyer says investigators also are looking into whether the British citizen used bogus securities to deceive regulators. Teale has been accused by U.S. Senate staff of boosting shaky companies that collapsed. MAXUS SAYS SUIT IS SETTLED: Maxus Energy Corp. Monday announced a settlement of its lawsuit against Kidder, Peabody & Co. Inc. for $165 million. Maxus said a significant portion of the money will be used to improve the balance sheet. Maxus is an independent exploration and production company. The suit involved a 1983 takeover of Natomas Co. by Maxus predecessor Diamond Shamrock Corp. RIDDELL SUES FORMER PRESIDENT: Riddell Sports Inc. Monday filed suit in New York's Supreme Court against its former president, chairman and chief operating officer, Frederick Brooks. Brooks is now chairman of M. Holdings Corp., formerly MacGregor Sporting Goods Inc. The suit charges that Brooks took actions to drive down the company's stock price so he could acquire control of the company. PACIFIC TO SELL OIL, GAS ASSETS: Pacific Enterprises Monday announced a definitive agreement to sell substantially all of its domestic oil and gas assets to Hunt Oil Co. for $371 million. Included in the sale are proved oil and gas reserves of about 63 million barrels of oil equivalent and nearly 1.4 million gross leasehold acres in major producing areas of the Rocky Mountains, Mid-Continent region and Gulf Coast states. Business Law Editor: Beth Mann. (919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM