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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Arthur Radley who wrote (270466)	7/5/2002 8:11:18 PM
From: Raymond Duray	Respond to of 769669

CHENEY TARGETED: Halliburton Faces Securities-Fraud Suits Amid SEC Probe biz.yahoo.com Friday July 5, 7:25 pm Eastern Time Halliburton Faces Securities-Fraud Suits Amid SEC Probe By: Rob Wells Dow Jones Newswires WASHINGTON -- Halliburton Co . faces at least 10 securities-fraud lawsuits following disclosure the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the company's accounting policies. The suits, which are seeking class-action status in federal courts in Texas , arise from questions about the company's accounting of cost overruns on construction jobs. Several suits, such as one filed by Hartford , Conn .-based Schatz & Nobel P.C., allege Halliburton "violated federal securities laws by issuing false and misleading statements" concerning its accounting between July 22, 1999 and May 28, 2002 . The lawsuits and the SEC's preliminary investigation follow a May 22 article in the New York Times questioning Halliburton's accounting. The investigation is also noteworthy because Vice President Dick Cheney was chief executive of Halliburton until he resigned in August 2000 to be President George W. Bush's running mate. Halliburton's vice president for investor relations, Cedric Burgher, said Friday the company doesn't believe the cases have merit. "When you see an SEC investigation, you will see these suits," he said. "It's to be expected." Halliburton officials said the company will cooperate with the SEC probe. The company said the accounting for construction claims and change orders was in line with generally accepted accounting principles for the construction industry. Analysts have shrugged off the SEC's probe, saying Halliburton's accounting was standard in the construction industry and the amount at issue wouldn't be material to a company that reported $13 billion in revenue last year. The lawsuits come as federal securities class-action lawsuits are on the rise amid the downturn in the stock market and revelations about corporate-accounting scandals. Joseph Grundfest, a former SEC commissioner and now a professor at Stanford University Law School, released a study in March showing 327 securities-law suits were filed in 2001, a 60% increase from the year earlier. "Plaintiffs continue to have powerful economic incentives to sue many companies for large sums of money," Mr. Grundfest said. John Olson, a securities lawyer for Gibson Dunn & Crutcher in Washington , said the 10 securities lawsuits against Halliburton aren't unusual. Such suits normally are filed quickly after disclosure of an SEC probe since plaintiff's lawyers are competing to be named lead counsel, which results in larger fees. "They like to get in early and get notices out early so they have a better shot for attracting a larger number of plaintiffs," Mr. Olson said. Telephone messages left with several firms, such as Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach and Schatz & Nobel, weren't immediately returned on Friday.