From an article by Herb Greenberg, TheStreet.com senior columnist:
[...] Finally, from the "truth-is-stranger-than-fiction" department: So, here's Titan (TTN:NYSE - news - boards), making a big stink about anonymous message board posters, and what shows up on the Yahoo! (YHOO:Nasdaq - news - boards) Titan message board Tuesday at 2:05 p.m.? An anonymous post (in that it wasn't signed) from someone who goes by the handle califlawyer1, who claims to be Titan's attorney. The post wasn't signed, which is the problem with message boards because you never know for sure if the person claiming to have done the post is really who the person says he or she is. But it sure sounded like Titan's outside attorney, Marshall Grossman, because the poster wrote things that, based on our conversation, only the attorney I spoke to would know so well. Grossman didn't return my call.
Forget for a moment how downright bizarre it would be for an attorney involved in a case in which he sought subpoenas to find the true identities of message board posters to post an anonymous message. (Or to post even an identified post!) Rather than deal with the questions I had asked about the testimony of an expert witness, the poster instead pointed out inaccuracies in a private report on Titan by a hedge fund manger who was sued by Titan over the report.
The poster then closes with a veiled threat of sorts: "This litigation should provide some insight into the workings of a number of different disciplines ... from lawyers ... to financial analysts ... and those who follow the stories."
And those who post on message boards ... if you get my drift.
thestreet.com
The Yahoo post in question:
Re: Herb regurgitates for Botti Brown
by: califlawyer1 12/12/00 2:05 pm
Msg: 66830 of 66910
As Titan's attorney, I write this in response to inquiries regarding the Herb Greenberg article. It is common for parties in litigation to hire experts to give them opinions they seek...and the "experts" Mr. Greenberg refers to were paid by Botti Brown for their opinions. These opinions have not been accepted by the Court or even considered by the Court as of this time. When Mr. Greenberg called me, I asked him if Botti Brown's attorneys had also provided him with John Botti's sworn declaration in which he discusses Titan's claims of 41 separate factual errors in the Botti Brown analysis; he said they did not. I urged Mr. Greenberg to review the entire record and report on it if he went forward with his article...which he apparantly declined to do. As an example I referred him to Botti Brown's statement in its reports that:"Titan Management have suggested a model wherein Titan receives $.05 per pound on 80-90 billion pounds of meat per year. This is ludicrous." John Botti has submitted a sworn declaration to the court in which he discusses Titan's claims that this statement is false. His response is: "...I inadvertantly overlooked a typographical error that added zeros to the meat-poundage numbers. The numbers should actually be 8-9 billion pounds per year, which is consistent with numbers in published research reports. ...In any event, when viewed in context, the error is immaterial...." This litigation should provide some insight into the workings of a number of different disciplines...from lawyers...to financial analysts...and those who follow the stories.
messages.yahoo.com
The original Herb Greenberg article is at:
thestreet.com |
