Corporations and securities brief ~ Fannie Mae faces new accounting troubles News
Corporations and securities brief ~ Fannie Mae faces new accounting troubles

[JURIST] Leading Wednesday's corporations and securities law news, Fannie Mae's federal regulator, Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) [official website], has found additional problems with the company's accounting practices. The OFHEO has raised concerns with the company's securities and loan accounting, consolidations, accounting for commitments and practices to smooth certain income and expense accounts. Fannie Mae [corporate website] also announced OFHEO has allowed a three month delay in the company's attempt to build a 30% capital surplus. Read the Fannie Mae press release. AP has more.

In other news…

  • Hershey Foods Corp. [corporate website], the nation's largest candymaker, announced in a regulatory filing with the SEC that it wants to change its name to "The Hershey Co." The Hershey Trust Co. will continue to hold a controlling stake in the company. AP has more.
  • According to a broker disclosure form filed with the National Association of Securities Dealers [official website], the SEC may recommend charges against former Bear Stearns [corporate website] broker Mark Hurant for his role in improper mutual-fund trading. CBSMarketWatch has more. In other news, Bear Stearns senior managing director Michael Zackman may face civil charges over his assistance to hedge funds and brokers who were engaging in abusive trading of mutual fund shares. Zackman denies the charges. In total, six former and current Bear Stearns employees are facing civil charges related to trading misconduct. The Street.com has more.
  • Medco Health Solutions Inc. [corporate website], one of the nation's largest pharmacy benefits managers, announced it will buy Accredo Health Inc. [corporate website] , a distributor of specialty drugs and services, for about $2.2 billion in cash and stock creating the nation's largest specialty pharmacy business. Read the Accredo Health press release. AP has more.
  • A Dell customer is suing the world's largest personal computer maker for pushing consumers into high-interest financing schemes, false advertising and bait-and-switch practices, fraud and deceit in its sales and advertising representations and breach of contract for unilaterally modifying terms and conditions. Dell Inc. [corporate website] had no comment on the suit. CNN has more.

Click for previous corporations and securities law news.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN General Assembly approves Palestine partition plan

The UN General Assembly approved UN Resolution Resolution 181 (II) on November 29, 1947, recommending that the British Mandate for Palestine be split into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and an international zone for Jerusalem. The vote in the assembly was 33 for to 13 against, with 10 abstentions. The resolution sparked a war between Palestinian Arabs and Jews in 1947 and a wider war after Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded the new State of Israel in 1948. Read Resolution 181 (II).

UN divided Palestine between Arabs and Jews

On November 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab territories, leading to the establishment of a Jewish state the following year. Read UN General Assembly Resolution 181.

Defense Secretary Robert McNamara resigns during Vietnam Conflict

On November 29, 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara announced that he was resigning from his office to accept an appointment as head of the World Bank. The announcement came as the Vietnam Conflict was becoming increasingly unpopular in the United States and abroad.