Posted on 12/27/2006 6:49:37 PM PST by driftdiver
Steve Jobs, chief executive of Apple Computer, was handed 7.5m stock options in 2001 without the required authorisation from the company’s board of directors, according to people familiar with the matter.
Records that purported to show a full board meeting had taken place to approve Mr Jobs’ remuneration, as required by Apple’s procedures, were later falsified. These are now among the pieces of evidence being weighed by the Securities and Exchange Commission as it decides whether to pursue a case against the company or any individuals over the affair, according to these people.
(Excerpt) Read more at ft.com ...
And DUmmies call for more government regulation! Wait for this to become the next snowball.
Don't get me wrong, I am all for punishing wrongdoers. But, politics will trump sanity.
I dont think a liberal like Jobs would steal money from shareholders, only conservatives do that.....
"Leave it alone. The man made that company and was later shafted for whatever reason (good or bad) and to punish someone for reaping the benefits from something that they themselves built out of thin air is absurd."
Yep he sure did and as the owner of a small company fighting to get bigger I can certainly appreciate the work and risk. however since he gave up control and went public to reap those rewards he must still comply with the law. Classic case of trying to have your cake and eat it too.
If the law was broken, put somebody in jail. It's that simple.
Bill Gates made them do it.
"If the law was broken, put somebody in jail. It's that simple."
But he makes funny commercials poking fun at the products which have 99% of the market share he MUST be innocent.
If Martha Stewart can do jail time for the "crime" she committed, then so can Jobs. To jail with him!
Maybe al bore signed off on the stock options....guess he goes to jail first.
O.J. jury (right here, of all places) unanimously votes: OFF WITH HIS HEAD!
According to the rest of the article, Jobs himself wasn't guilty of misconduct. And when he learned that he was incorrectly given the stock he returned it without recieving any financial benefit from it. According to Apple's internal investigation the current management team didn't do anything wrong. There are two former executives who appear to have been in the wrong.
The intro of that new iPod scheduled for Macworld in two weeks may be postponed a bit....
"There are two former executives who appear to have been in the wrong."
So they gave him stock options illegally (slight difference from wrong) without his knowledge? Fat chance of that. They forged official and public documents.
It says he knew about it, but wasn't aware that it was against the law. When he was informed he returned it without recieving any benefit from it. Until more information comes out it doesn't appear to me that Jobs knowingly broke the law. but who knows the SEC might find out he is the Anti-Christ during their investigation.
Found another article at marketwatch.com on it. It has the following "That same investigation revealed that "in a few instances, Chief Executive Steve Jobs was aware that favorable grant dates had been selected, but he did not receive or otherwise benefit from these grants and was unaware of the accounting implications" of backdating."
BS, even I know the implications of backdating. Further, they forged notes from a meeting that he was most likely sitting in. I think they can't prove he knew but what are the chances he was surprised with a bunch of options that the 'board' approved but that he was previously unaware of.
All returning means he hadn't exercised them. Laws were broken at Apple. Whether or not Jobs is guilty this will have serious repercussions.
With how the company has performed under his leadership I don't think shareholders should complain!
Al Gore is one of the three members of the compensation board.
Stock goes up, execs get a few backdated options. Who loses on the deal? Shareholders? Short sellers? Ah, the gummint on the taxes owed. Arbitrary, incomprehensible laws, SOX mess (believe me, I have to deal with it daily, much to the detriment of the company I work for,) gummint watchdogs looking only for somebody wearing a white collar to indict. And the mob of class envy demands their heads!
I watched a very interesting online movie this weekend about Jobs and Gates in the early years:
The Pirates of Silicon Valley
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7941901498664355924&q=the+pirates+of+silicon+valley
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