In Wednesday's corporations and securities law news, SEC officials in Boston are investigating roughly two dozen mutual fund firms for any improper trading by fund managers, traders and other insiders over the past three years. CBS MarketWatch has more.

In other news...

• As reported earlier on JURIST's Paper Chase, new indictments of perjury and obstruction of justice charges were added to the original criminal case [PDF] against fired HealthSouth Corp. chief executive Richard Scrushy involving the company's accounting scandal. Read the original SEC complaint against Scrushy here. AP has more.
  
  
• ConocoPhillips announced it will buy 7.6% of OAO Lukoil from Russia for $1.99 billion and may raise that stake to 20% in the coming years. Read the ConocoPhillips press release here. ConocoPhillips had a live press conference and presentation files [PDF] today. Bloomberg has more.
  
  
• Cendant Corp., the world's largest hotel franchiser, will buy Orbitz Inc. for $1.25 billion, becoming the second-largest company in the online travel market. Read the Cedant and Orbitz press releases. Bloomberg has more.
  
  
• As previously reported on JURIST's Paper Chase, Martha Stewart has been ordered to serve her five-month sentence at the federal prison in Alderson, West Virginia. Stewart had requested serving the sentence in Connecticut or Florida. JURIST's Paper Chase has background of the Stewart case. AP has more.
  
  
• Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. announced it will let an offer for outstanding stock in the gold company expire, in effect conceding defeat in its hostile takeover bid of Wheaton River Minerals Ltd. of British Columbia. Read an update on the bid on the Coeur website. AP has more.