Bill,
I'm not sure what the tax event is seeing we're supposed to get a one for one DCTC and CRZN. If both are considered to retain their full value, it would appear DCI's death rattle would be a wash against CRZN's almost death rattle. Perhaps Mr. Cody will enlighten us on this matter.
Looking to Murphy for help is like looking for a carp to ride a bicycle. My apologies to the fish. Carp-er fi, etc.
Oh well, who knows. Maybe Shatsoff will surprise everyone. If CRZN goes over .03 in time there may even be (dare I say) hope? If not, there's always the Wailing Wall...or Lourdes.
Below is an interesting story that sounds all too familiar. Live and learn.
Onward,
George
------------------
Bankruptcy Protection
Updated: Fri, Jan 05 10:33 AM EST
By CONSTANTINOS , Associated Press Writer
IEPER, Belgium (AP) - A judge on Friday
granted bankruptcy protection to
Lernout & Hauspie, the once high-flying
company that made billions with
voice-controlled computer technology
and wowed firms like Microsoft and Intel
before crashing amid accusations of
financial misdeeds.
The company chairman later indicated
Lernout's restructuring plan includes
cutting about 1,200 jobs, or about 20
percent of its work force.
Saying there is "no doubt there was
fraud" at Lernout & Hauspie, Judge
Michel Handschoewerker cleared the way for the Belgian company to
seek immediate protection from creditors while it restructures. He
added that some board members should be removed.
L&H's bankruptcy filings followed the discovery of a series of
accounting problems, including a $100 million cash shortfall at its
Korean unit. An audit-committee report last month also detailed
numerous sketchy transactions, accusing the company of listing
revenue before contracts were even signed and backdating
contracts - among other things.
The company, which also has offices in Burlington, Mass., grew to
be a world leader in speech technology software - products that
allow computers to be controlled by voice commands. It attracted
multimillion-dollar investments from top firms like Microsoft and
Intel before revelations of improprieties last year sent it
plummeting.
Since then, the company has lost almost all of its share value -
some $10 billion. It has been delisted from the Nasdaq and Easdaq
exchanges and sees bankruptcy protection as a final attempt to
save itself.
Lernout & Hauspie refiled for a
so-called concordat - the Belgian
equivalent to Chapter 11
bankruptcy protection - last week.
The court had rejected its first
petition Dec. 8 as poorly prepared
and insufficient.
After Friday's ruling, chairman Roel
Pieper said the company's plan includes laying off 1,200 employees
- about 20 percent of the firm's work force in 40 countries.
"This is a difficult phase but certainly necessary," Pieper said after
the court session. "We will start immediately the process of setting
things right."
Co-founder Pol Hauspie is also under investigation for possible
fraud after investigators last month found an undisclosed amount
of money in his private bank account that could not be accounted
for.
Hauspie's lawyer, Frank Van Leemput, said Friday the amount was
"less than $1 million." He declined to say where the money came
from but said "everything can be explained."
The cost-cutting plan won approval Thursday in the United States,
Pieper said, adding that the company has the financial backing to
carry it out.
The company has been operating under bankruptcy guidelines in
the United States since late November. The bankruptcy filings
followed the discovery of a series of accounting problems, including
a $100 million cash shortfall at its Korean unit.
A L&H audit-committee report last month detailed numerous
questionable transactions. It recommended that the board consider
taking "disciplinary action" against co-founders Jo Lernout and
Hauspie, former chief executive Gaston Bastiaens and former vice
chairman Nico Willaert.
All except Lernout resigned from their board positions the day the
report was presented to L&H's board in late November.
The company's main creditors are a group of five banks that put
forward a $400 million loan to finance Lernout & Hauspie's
acquisition of Dictaphone Corp. in the United States last year. A
short-term loan of $180 million falls due March 31. |
