Cases in Corporate Governance
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Cases in rporate Governance ROBERT WEARING PSAGE Los Mgo1es London New Deftd Sngaporo Wsshkigton DC ca51 ,,: co ai! uuiC na! 1 2 ti t ( o, por ‘te adhu r Repor (1992 kepnrt c[ rh ( on,na,tte o tio F o ou, d A / ( o unance 1 ondon Cace Pohlishing 1 1 srkc T 32004) C seles >f e is and regol anon do c nduring as nu ind r1 w ardship prob os; 1 R tuir ti Vi>! 12 ro of corporite Ovc r 1 1 ( ( oq,oratc ( 01 £ til O A o Internar Nc — MaxweN •ls it iii hinga ps lo 1 1 P ind I{ussc!l P0 i2i:i1 E ,dbn san1! o, d pererprIl ri 2u. .11, nlanrr:t ‘0ev rir enroorale gosvrnh:icc rcg ,iar.on iii,tvhAcnott.’:cRçi!eu. FOUR No. 4: 355_74, ii tni,tflee. 1 .Oi ld 00 Ei n,nlL. .1 1 Reporri ng (5o miei 1 2 3 TI:: Co,,,!, nu] ( Ii sol C ri::> rato ( 1 T1;iflCjil Reportine (.oor’ç:i. si. 011: h i o g. (;rcr ii ho ri Report 1 995 1 1)1 recto rs 1< ennnzeratlo 1 .r md (,ce Pu h 1 is e ria 1 iço!. ri Eu tope and reune. E. and Reon> P. 1 04 ‘Pos r -Sarba nes—() ‘Ir crlrps rat e )ir . astros! o! fiados tire alui rfi e USA: Ame rica O ‘siri 00 r ei anverge ncc la ternatn,nal / Co; ‘ernance, Vol. 1, No. 1: 21 -.34. Report. London: Ccc Hanapel Report (1998) Co,,,nuttee o,, Corporatt’ Coverna,,ce: Final lii November 1 991 the UK business scene was stun ned to Iearn tbar Ptmhlishing. 0 Rohert Maxwell, an apparently snccessful husiness leader with importanr the Role and Eflectiveness o[ Non-Fxecut,ve 1);rectors, 1-liggs Revicw (2003) Revicua of newspaper and puhlishing interests, had disappeared at soa from bis yachr 1,ondon: Departmenr of Trade and Indusrry. 1 In tbe following weeks it hecame clear ibar bis husiness Lander. (iP. (2004) Wbat k .S,n-banes—Oxley? New York: McGraw-HiII. 1 Lad’m’ Ghislaine. 1,ondon Srock E.xchange 1) 998) Fie Comhined (ode: Principies o[ Coo] C,-’,’ernance and empire was in serious financial difficulries, and had heen for some time. Codc ,,f ilest Practice. tondon: London Stock Exehange. A report published hy the Departnienr of frade and lndustrv (DII) in Sarbanes—Oxles Act of 2002. Pubiic lati: 107—204. \Va,hmngron, DE. 31) juli. Marcb 2001 was referred (o in one newspaper’ as descrihing a rale oÍ on,n,ittees: Co,nl,i,od (ride Guida,,cc. l andon: Financ;aI Smirh Report 2003 And,: greed, cliquiness, naivery and amateurism ar the hearr oí Europe’s lead Reporring Council. culprirs !1,,ir Corporate NIessai3e /0 Stakeholders. ing financial centre’. lhe Dli inspecrors concluded rhat ‘the chief Srirrlc. 32003) .4,,nual Reports: feL r-ering A Iderçhrar: (.iower. in rhe deception thar allowed the puhlisher tom raid £400m írorn rhe pen Tu ria boi! Report 1 999 Interna! Contrni: (3si, dance for 1 )irectors os, thc Com (mcd Code. sion fund til Mirror Group Newspapers were Maxvell and bis son, london: Instirure of Charrered Accc,unrants mia Englamid and \Ea!cs. Kevin’.2 Thc Tysoti Report on the Reenot,,,ent and l)evelopni cor ,-,f Non—Fxc eu!,, e Tso o, L. 12003) Ruhert Maxwell was uriginally bom Jan Ludvik Hoch iii 1923. His I),rectors. London: London 1)usiness Schooi. father was a labourer and the famiiy apparently lived in poverty in a small village in what was then Czechuslovakia. Maxwell fuund it easy tu learn NOTES languages and he claimed tu he able tu speak nine, including Czech, French, German and Russian, as welI as English. Given that he had heen bom intu 1 Soe, 1or insrance, Srirtlc. 2003: i35—60. a jewish family, he was ]ucky tu escape frum mainland Europe in 1940. 2 Financial finca, 2 April 20(12: 14. Manv nicmhers of bis immediare familv s’oere tu die latem in rhe Hulucaust. 3\eu )i,rk Tinzes. 2 Atigusr 2)102. 1. There are differing accuunts of how he managed tu reach Brirain: what is 4 Fin,,icial Tmn,es. 1 4 une 1004: 26 known is thar in Mav 1940 he arríved ia Liverpool. having travclled hy 7)n,cs, 1004: 26. $ 1-maneia! 14 hnic ship Marseille in France. 6 l-!n, lime ia? Tmn,es. II (icrober 21)04: 3. frum 7 E; nas,, e;! Tin,es, 1 9 Ccci ,be r 2)1)14: 6 Whilsr in the UK Maxwell perfected bis English, and acquired English 8 See A ccoz,nta,;cy. Junc 2004: 29—3.3. customs and mannemisnis. Maxwell had an evenrful war, heing prunioted / Tin,es, .31 til y 21)1)4: 1 9. ,,anc,al 1 4 eventualy tu captam in 1945. After fighting in France, he was awarded de a Military Cross for exceptiunal braverv hy Field Marshal Montgomery. lhe name Jan Ludvik Floch was dropped mn favour of the name Rohert Maxwell and he married Elisabeth Meynard. At the end uí tbe war, MaxweH was stationed in Berlin where the army made good use of his lira 1 guistic abilities. e L r 27 MAXWELL’S EARLY BUSNESS AND j ax ei! had hec i Vvung tu ru 1’ is husuness ernptt r, with POUTCAL AFFARS as rhe basis E lis strateg was tu attcmpt tu take uver cumpanies such as tbc j Neu ufthe Wurld and uncrease theur prufutahilit and bem e rnarket value, New was Maweli vias ambinous tu succeed iii rhc pttbbsbing indnsirv and became 1 su bis defear un tbc bartie fur the u[ the Wurld a cunsiderahlc invuiwed iii a nurnber uÍ bnsiness venturcs. In May 1 951 1w raised rhe hlus ‘o bis hnsuness a unhitiuns AccurdinR tu Buvier 1 992. I easco’s prol k rr aset’ tu Strunherr had hecru tina ncc tu purchase frum Bntterwurrhs heir share uf a pnhiish inaC( mpaIl it’ ir S2 n md iunutinued Si hn ‘vhich bt’ renarned Pergan ou Press. and virh vhich he vias 1, Iw ass sareu ri.. ( CNStUI i’ iii i ‘ii [ir r ul tal. eu’ cr5 i n 1 rner4ers a”d s’ as sri II «ri 1’ 29 ar, tur tlic rest ul bis life. Durma rhe 1 9SUs and 1 960s Ma \\vell buir up ukl Fur \1a\\ cli it Is iunpurtant tbat rir .Kcuunts ul Perr iinun Lur 1 96S [‘erga um )n l>ress iuitu a stuccesstul publusber rui huks and uuirilais. parric— shuuld hos a subsi anti ai prutit slncr tb s ‘ uuld sri pp rr rhe çha rc pricr uularlv scicnrific uourruals. and l ssist ncrona nuns v. uth Lrascu 1 1w a uditurs ut Pt rnaniun v ere \la \welI vias keen tu succeed iii pulitucal life as tvell as 111 buusuness. Fie Chai rners lrnpe, bur the $und.n runn had q ueriuned tbe audir pruce was adupted as rhe Lahuur Party candidate for Norrh Buckinghamshire 3 dures tised hy E lia 1 niers Impev ou Pergamun’s au_ounts, for insta nce. stucks ssere uvervalued and ri the 1964 general electiun was eiecred tu Parliarnent. Whiie there, 1 allcizpng that Maxweli attempted tu pursue hutb a political career and a business career 4 In June 1969 Leascu and Pergarnun had reached agreement in prima hut he appeared tu find ir difficuit tu recunciie his husiness interesrs with 1 pie rbat 1 eascu wouid hud for Pergamun after havung successfully bis puhliciy stated sucialist principies. By 1964 he vias alreadv a milliun 1 cumplered investigatuons into the financial affairs uf Pergarnun Howeveu exrract aire and vias distrusred hy some Labour Parn- members. When speaking tu Leascu’s financial adsusers were finding ut difficult tu rhe necessary Ç tu receis e a Lahuur Partv cunference iii 1967 1w tried tu justifv sending sume uf bis iuiforuna riun (rum Perga nuun and v ere funding ir dufí,c ult cbildren tu public schuuls 1 Butveu. 1992: 125, a puint 01 vinv which did a ns\ ers ti) rheur quiestlouus trum \ia\ss cii B August 1969 Sreunherg and nut endear bim tu Labouir Parrv activists. In ju!v 1964, Pergarnuiu Press vias bis ad’ uscrs had douhts abuur rbe triture proturabulurt ul Pergamon; rhe fluated ou rhe Lundun Stuck Excbange. Maxwell’s stake in Pergamun vias v. ere hcu_omung uncreasungk ner ous abour the takeus er and xanted tu estimated ar appruximatelv £1 Om. altbuugh bis actual wealrh vias pruba urhdrav trum the hid Ho’ ex er. sunce Leasco had agreed tu rhe rakeu er Ilv grearer since ar rhat time surne uf bis wealth vias alsu held ri trrists iii un principie. a ‘aiud reasun no suthdrass v.uuld be required So Steinherg Líecbten srei ri. xx anted tu withdras frum the hud, hur \1axwell x anted the bud tu In L 968 Maxweii hecame nvulved iii a hid fur the Neus ofthe Wurld, procced a UK Suruday newspaper. A hitterly cuntesred takeuver bartie ensued when Tbe Takeover Panei had tu decide ss hether Leascu could he allowed tu Rupert Murduch, an Australian puhhsher, decided tu hid fur the news wuthdraw their hud for Pergamon lt vias finally agreed that the hid would paper. By eariy 1969 Maxweli had tu concede defeat and Murduch 1 go ahead Maxwell wouid remam as chaurman of Pergarnon but would uiot acqnired cunrrul. Alsu in 1 969, Maxwell wanted tu gain cunrrci uf The 1 he managung director Tlie Takeover Panei alsu called for a fuli Board of Sun, a IJK daily newspaper.