DOCSLIB.ORG

Healthsouth Corporation: Fraud, Greed and Corporate Governance

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Healthsouth Corporation: Fraud, Greed and Corporate Governance HealthSouth Corporation: Fraud, Greed and Corporate Governance Manmohan D. Chaubey, Ph.D. The Pennsylvania State University One College Place Du Bois, PA 15801 (USA) Tel: 814-375-4846 Fax: 814-375-4784 Email: [email protected] Case for ICMC2006 International Conference on Management Cases 4-5 December 2006 IMT Ghaziabad, India HealthSouth Corporation: Fraud, Greed and Corporate Governance During the 1990s, Richard M. Scrushy, the former CEO of HealthSouth Corporation, engineered many acquisitions of rehabilitation clinics, outpatient surgical care operators, nursing homes and other health care companies. In 2003, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused the company and Scrushy of inflating earnings to the tune of $1.4 billion since 1999. In November 2003, a federal grand jury indicted Scrushy on 85 counts including conspiracy, securities fraud, money laundering and charges related to overstating HealthSouth’s earnings by nearly $3.0 billion. According to federal investigators, the company overstated earnings to meet analysts’ earning estimates, while hiding the accounting fraud from the auditors. However, questions were raised whether the auditors failed to find or simply overlooked the fraud at HealthSouth. Central to the investigation was the issue of what role Scrushy played in “cooking the books.” However, as the case unfolded, it highlighted many other issues such as: The role of Board of Directors in corporate governance; the role of the auditors; the effect of conflict of interest between an accounting firm and its consulting arm on auditing; whether the relationship between an investment bank and a company affects the quality of the bank’s research reports on the company; whether the executive compensation that overly relies on company’s earnings provides an incentive for committing such fraud; whether a strong leader can silence all voices of reason in an organization. Background Scrushy, once a high school dropout, worked as a gas station attendant and a bricklayer before retuning to school and earning his diploma. He studied at University of Alabama, Birmingham and graduated with a degree in respiration therapy in 1974. After graduation he became an instructor at UAB. In 1979, Scrushy left the academia and took up a position at a Texas health care management firm. The firm was sold in 1983 and Scrushy decided to go on his own with a new business idea. In 1984, with help from some friends and an initial investment of $50,000, he founded HealthSouth in Little Rock, Arkansas. In 1985 he moved the company to Birmingham, Alabama (Heylar, 7/7/03). HealthSouth went public in 1986. Richard Scrushy spotted certain trends that he incorporated in his very successful business model for HealthSouth. These trends were: Lower reimbursement for medical care, new emphasis on rehabilitation as opposed to surgery, the need to get employees back to work faster, and the absence of brand names in health care. He also wanted his rehabilitation centers to look more like upscale clubs than a hospital. He used his super sales skills, boundless energy and entrepreneurial skills in setting up clinics, making acquisitions and expanding the company. He concentrated on acquiring contracts with managed care operations and self-insured companies for workers’ compensation rehabilitation. He focused individual facilities on specific ailments. To keep costs down, he standardized the physical layouts of his facilities and used same floor plan and furnishing for all locations (Hoover’s, 2006). By 1988, HealthSouth had expanded to nearly 40 facilities in 15 states. Scrushy expanded HealthSouth through acquisitions. The company acquired most of the rehabilitation services business of National Medical Enterprise and became the largest provider of rehabilitation services in 1993. By 1992, HealthSouth was generating revenues to the tune of $400 million and operated 145 clinics. Scrushy formed MedPartners and entered physician practice management (PPM) field. Scrushy engineered many acquisitions and MedPartners became the largest PPM in the country. HealthSouth further expanded into inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and outpatient surgery centers (Hoover’s, 2006). HealthSouth also entered the traditional hospital field in 2000 through acquisition of a hospital in Birmingham, Alabama and announced plans for a $300 million “digital hospital” near its corporate center. By 2000, the company was dominated the rehabilitation services market and was very profitable. Eventually, HealthSouth became the largest provider of outpatient surgery, diagnostic and imaging services as well as rehabilitation services in the United States with 1,700 facilities and 51,000 employees. A summary of the company’s finances and number of employees is given in Appendix I. As head of third largest publicly held company in Alabama and one of the fastest growing health care companies in the country, Richard Scrushy became a celebrity in Birmingham (Alabama). As a philanthropist, he made sizable donations to charities, churches and universities. However, Scrushy was also known as an ambitious man who wanted to be the highest paid CEO in the United States. He was a strong leader, surrounded by friends and colleagues who learned to do things his way, or get out of the way. He was even called a “supercilious bully” by some ex-colleagues. Scrushy was terminated from the company after the SEC sued HealthSouth for “cooking the books” in March 2003 (Heylar, 2003). The SEC Investigation & Indictments In 2003, the Securities and Exchange Commission accused in a civil law suit the HealthSouth Corporation and Richard M. Scrushy of inflating the company’s earnings by $1.9billion since 1999 (Securities and Exchange Commission, 2003). In separate criminal charges, 15 former executives pleaded guilty of participating in a scheme to fake corporate profits to meet Wall Street Expectations. The former executives pleading guilty included five former chief financial officers, a senior vice president in the tax department, a financial vice president, and a vice president of investment. The scheme involved regular meetings among certain senior company officials to find the “dirt” to fill the earnings hole to meet Wall Street’s earnings expectations and hide firm’s true financial condition (Wilke and Terhune (2003). Some of these executives claimed that Scrushy directed the fraud. These former executives agreed to cooperate with the Government in exchange for leniency and for avoiding possible jail term. The SEC alleged that when HealthSouth’s earnings fell short of Wall Street analysts’ expectations, Scrushy directed company’s personnel to “fix it” by inflating the company’s earnings. HealthSouth’s senior accounting personnel convened meetings of so called “family members” to fix earnings. These meetings agreed upon accounting entrees to reduce a contra revenue account and/or decreasing expenses, and correspondingly increasing assets or decreasing liabilities. Essentially, to balance the company’s books, false increases in earnings were matched by false increases in company’s assets. Since, the contractual adjustment accounts are based upon an estimate of the difference between what the company billed a patient and the amount of money insurance companies reimbursed HealthSouth, there was a limited paper trail and it was very difficult for the auditors to verify individual entries (Frieswick, 2003). HealthSouth scandal is distinguished by the length of the fraud and the number (five) of CFOs who participated. Apparently, Scrushy’s powerful personality and greed that stretched from Scrushy to his five CFOs, who were overpaid in their positions, helped contribute to the fraud. Another structural contributor to the fraud was the fact that most decisions were made at the executive level, which limited checks and balances along the way. Mr. Scrushy was finally indicted by a federal grand jury in November of 2003 on 85 Deleted: The SEC is expected to indict counts including conspiracy, securities fraud, money laundering and other charges related to a scheme to overstate HealthSouth’s profits by nearly $3 billion. He was also accused of using Deleted: i corporate funds (money laundering) to buy personal items such as luxurious cars, boats, Deleted: famous paintings, expensive jewelry, antique rugs, etc. The IRS and other authorities traced Deleted: during late 2003 Deleted: ; assets that could be tied to alleged fraudulent acts. If Scrushy were found guilty of criminal charges, the government could seize and sell the assets. In September of 2004, the U.S. attorney in Birmingham announced that Richard Scrushy faced new federal charges of perjury and obstruction of justice in a revised indictment by a grand jury. The new 58-count indictment consolidated the 85-count indictment that had been previously announced. Scrushy pleaded not guilty to all counts. Scrushy could face what would amount to a lifetime sentence in prison and a fine of more than $30 million if convicted of all charges. Prosecutors are also seeking $278 million in assets. Scrushy has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all charges. He was Deleted: is free on $10 million bail bond, while awaiting trial. The Scrushy Trial The Scrushy trial began in January 2005. Following jury selection, the chief federal prosecutor, Alice M. Martin, alleged that Scrushy was the mastermind behind the financial fraud at HealthSouth and that he knew about, participated in, and profited from the conspiracy. The defense contended that Scrushy was a victim of the fraud; that the fraud was conceived and perpetrated by senior accounting personnel who misled Scrushy and the outside auditors. The defense attacked the credibility of HealthSouth’s CFOs, claiming that they agreed to the plea bargain and to testify against Scrushy to gain reduced sentences. Former CFO William T. Owens in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation wore a recorder in a meeting with Scrushy. The tape indicated that Scrushy was a hands-on CEO who exhorted his senior executives to take measures to keep profits high and prevent losses on their stock investments. On the tape, Scrushy had warned of dire financial consequences both to Owens and to the company.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • United States District Court Northern District of Alabama Southern Division
    UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA SOUTHERN DIVISION In re HEALTHSOUTH CORPORATION ) Master File No. CV-03-BE-1500-S SECURITIES LITIGATION ) ) This Document Relates To: All Actions ) ) In re HEALTHSOUTH CORPORATION ) Consolidated Case No. CV-03-BE-1501-S STOCKHOLDER LITIGATION ) ) CLASS ACTION This Document Relates To: All Actions ) ) In re HEALTHSOUTH CORPORATION ) Consolidated Case No. CV-03-BE-1502-S BONDHOLDER LITIGATION ) ) CLASS ACTION This Document Relates To: All Actions ) ) JOINT SECOND AMENDED CONSOLIDATED CLASS ACTION COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE FEDERAL SECURITIES LAWS [FACTUAL BASIS] DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................1 The Scheme..........................................................................................................................3 Ernst & Young’s Participation in the Fraudulent Scheme...................................................5 Underwriters’ Knowing Involvement..................................................................................8 Financial Fraud ..................................................................................................................14 Medicare Fraud ..................................................................................................................15 Passage of the Balanced Budget Act and Defendants’ Sale of Stock and Notes...............16 Defendants Reinflate the Price of
    [Show full text]
  • In Re: Healthsouth Corporation Securities Litigation 03-CV-1500
    UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA SOUTHERN DIVISION In re HEALTHSOUTH CORPORATION ) Consolidated Case No. CV-03-BE-1500-S SECURITIES LITIGATION ) ) CLASS ACTION ) This Document Relates To: ) APPENDICES TO JOINT AMENDED ) CONSOLIDATED COMPLAINT FOR ALL ACTIONS. ) VIOLATIONS OF THE FEDERAL ) SECURITIES LAWS In support of the allegations made in the Joint Amended Consolidated Class Action Complaint for Violations of the Federal Securities Laws [Factual Basis], plaintiffs hereby submit the following documents:1 Appendix 1: Members of HealthSouth’s Board and Board Committees Appendix 2: False and Misleading Statements Re HealthSouth’s Financial and Operating Results Appendix 3: Defendants' Insider Trading Appendix 4: 20A Contemporaneous Trades Appendix 5: Board Attendance for Selected Meetings Appendix 6: Summary of False Statements by UBS Appendix 7: Summary of False Statements by Citi/Salomon Appendix 8: HealthSouth’s Historical Acquisitions Daily Share Pricing – September 24, 1986 to September 5, 2003 Appendix 9: Defendants’ Insider Selling and Notes Offerings Daily Share Pricing: 10/03/1994 - 4/17/2003 Appendix 10: HealthSouth Corp. – Salomon Smith Barney Underwritings/ Loans/Analyst Reports and Daily Share Prices April 1997 to June 2003 Appendix 11: HealthSouth Corp. – UBS Underwritings/Loans/Analyst Reports Daily Share Pricing – July 1, 1996 - April 18, 2003 Appendix 12: Selected False or Misleading Statements Issued by HealthSouth, UBS and Salomon – Daily Share Pricing – January 2, 1997 to June 30, 2003 Appendix 13: Facts Related to Steve Schlatter Appendix 14: Facts Based on the Testimony of Martin Cohen Before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, October 16, 2003. Appendix 15: BBA Provisions 1 Pursuant to the Court’s January 6, 2004 Order Regarding Electronic Service, oversized documents, Appendices 8 through 12, shall be served by overnight delivery.
    [Show full text]
  • IN the DON EUGENE SIEGELMAN, Petitioner, Respondent. Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appea
    No. 09- IN THE DON EUGENE SIEGELMAN, Petitioner, Vo UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent. Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI KEVIN DIGREGORY SAM HELDMAN MANATT, PHELPS & Counsel of Record PHILLIPS, LLP THE GARDNER FIRM, PC 700 12th St. NW, Ste. 100 2805 31st St. NW Washington, DC 20005 Washington, DC 20008 (202) 965-8884 REDDING PITT FARRIS, RILEY & PITT, LLP VINCENT F. KILBORN III Massey Bldg., Ste. 400 DAVID A. MCDONALD 2025 3rd Ave. North KILBORN, ROEBUCK & Birmingham, AL 35203 MCDONALD P.O. Box 66710 Mobile, AL 36606 WILSON-IEPES PRtNTING CO., INC. - (202) 789-0096 - WASHINGTON, D. C. 20002 Blank Page QUESTIONS PRESENTED 1. Under McCormick v. United States, 500 U.S. 257, 273 (1991), a connection between a campaign contribution and an official action is a crime "only if the payments are made in return for an explicit promise or undertaking by the official to perform or not to perform an official act. In such situations the official asserts that his official conduct will be con- trolled by the terms of the promise or undertaking." Does this standard require proof of an "explicit" quid pro quo promise or undertaking in the sense of actually being communicated expressly, as various Circuits have stated; or can there be a conviction based instead only on the inference that there was an unstated and implied agreement, a state of mind, connecting the contribution and an official action? 2. Does the "intent" clause of the obstruction of justice statute 18 U.S.C.
    [Show full text]
  • Siegelman Really Final
    No. 07-13163-B IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ___________________________________ UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Appellee vs. DON EUGENE SIEGELMAN, et al., Appellants ___________________________________ On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama ___________________________________ BRIEF OF GOVERNOR DON SIEGELMAN, APPELLANT ___________________________________ Vincent F. Kilborn, III Redding Pitt David A. McDonald John D. Saxon, PC Kilborn, Roebuck & McDonald 2119 Third Avenue, North Post Office Box 66710 Birmingham AL 35203 Mobile AL 36606 (205) 324-0233 (251) 479-9010 Sam Heldman Hiram Eastland, Jr. The Gardner Firm Eastland Law Offices, PLLC 2805 31st St. NW 107 Grand Boulevard Washington DC 20008 Greenwood MS 38930 (202) 965-8884 (662) 453-1227 U.S. v. Siegelman, No. 07-13163 Page C1 of 2 Certificate of Interested Persons The following persons may have an interest in the outcome of this case. Adams, Richard Martin, Counsel for Richard Scrushy Blakey, George Robert, Counsel for Governor Siegelman Coody, Honorable Charles S., U.S. Magistrate Judge Eastland, Hiram C., Jr., Counsel for Governor Siegelman Feaga, Stephen P., Counsel for Appellee Franklin, Louis V., Sr., Counsel for Appellee Fitzpatrick, Joseph L., Jr., Counsel for Appellee Fuller, Honorable Mark E., U.S. District Judge Heldman, Sam, Counsel for Governor Siegelman Helmsing, Frederick George, Sr., Counsel for Richard Scrushy Hernandez, Carmen D., Counsel for Richard Scrushy James, Susan Graham, Counsel for Governor Siegelman Jenkins, James K., Counsel for Governor Siegelman Kilborn, Vincent F., III, Counsel for Governor Siegelman Leach, Arthur W., Counsel for Richard Scrushy McDonald, David A., Counsel for Governor Siegelman U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Opinion Were Sent in Response to an Email Received by the Juror
    Case: 12-10694 Date Filed: 07/15/2013 Page: 1 of 40 [PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ________________________ No. 12-10694 ________________________ D.C. Docket No. 2:05-cr-00119-MEF-CSC-4 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, versus RICHARD SCRUSHY, Defendant - Appellant. ________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama ________________________ (July 15, 2013) Before TJOFLAT and COX, Circuit Judges, and BOWEN,∗ District Judge. TJOFLAT, Circuit Judge: ∗ Honorable Dudley H. Bowen, Jr., United States District Judge for the Southern District of Georgia, sitting by designation. Case: 12-10694 Date Filed: 07/15/2013 Page: 2 of 40 On June 29, 2006, a Middle District of Alabama jury found Don Eugene Siegelman, a former Governor of Alabama, and Richard Scrushy, the founder and former Chief Executive Officer of HealthSouth Corporation, a major hospital corporation with operations throughout Alabama, guilty of federal funds bribery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)(B); honest services mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341 and 1346; and conspiracy to commit the latter offenses, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371.1 We affirmed Scrushy’s convictions and sentence and all but two of Siegelman’s convictions in United States v. Siegelman (Siegelman I), 561 F.3d 1215 (11th Cir. 2009). After it decided Skilling v. United States, 561 U.S. ---, 130 S. Ct. 2896, 177 L. Ed. 2d 619 (2010), the United States Supreme Court granted Scrushy and Siegelman’s petition for writ of certiorari and remanded their cases to this court for reconsideration in light of Skilling.
    [Show full text]
  • Supreme Court of the United States !! !!
    No. 11-955 IN THE Supreme Court of the United States !! !! DON EUGENE SIEGELMAN, Petitioner, v. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent. On Petition For Writ of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit BRIEF AMICI CURIAE OF FORMER ATTORNEYS GENERAL IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONER BURTON N. LIPSHIE JEFFREY A. MODISETT Counsel of Record Of Counsel ROBERT ABRAMS SNR DENTON JOSEPH E. STRAUSS 601 South Figueroa Street STROOCK & STROOCK Los Angeles, California 90017 & LAVAN LLP 213-892-2802 180 Maiden Lane ROBERT T. STEPHAN New York, New York 10038 Of Counsel 212-806-5400 12548 West 123rd Street GRANT WOODS Overland Park, Kansas 66213 Of Counsel 913-685-1953 1726 North 7th Street Phoenix, Arizona 85006 602-957-1500 Counsel for Amici Curiae March 1, 2012 LIST OF AMICI 1. Abrams, Robert, former Attorney General for the State of New York 2. Anzai, Earl, former Attorney General for the State of Hawaii 3. Armstrong, David, former Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Kentucky 4. Baily, Douglas B., former Attorney General for the State of Alaska 5. Baker, Thurbert, former Attorney General for the State of Georgia 6. Ballentine, Rosalie Simmonds, former Attorney General for Virgin Islands 7. Bardacke, Paul, former Attorney General for the State of New Mexico 8. Bellotti, Francis X., former Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 9. Botelho, Bruce, former Attorney General for the State of Alaska 10. Bronster, Margery, former Attorney General for the State of Hawaii 11. Brown, Charles G., former Attorney General for the State of West Virginia 12.
    [Show full text]
  • Case No. 12-10694 District Court Case No. 2:05-CR-119-MEF in the UNITED STATES COURT of APPEALS for the ELEVENTH CIRCUIT UNITED
    Case: 12-10694 Date Filed: 08/02/2013 Page: 1 of 62 Case No. 12-10694 District Court Case No. 2:05-CR-119-MEF IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Appellee-Plaintiff, v. RICHARD SCRUSHY, Appellant-Defendant. On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama PETITION FOR REHEARING EN BANC __________________________________________________________________ Arthur W. Leach James K. Jenkins Suite 225 MALOY JENKINS PARKER 5780 Windward Parkway 900 Arapahoe Avenue Alpharetta, Georgia 30005 Boulder, Colorado 80302 404-786-6443 303-443-9048 Leslie V. Moore Suite 204 5184 Caldwell Mill Road Birmingham, Alabama 35244 205-790-1062 Case: 12-10694 Date Filed: 08/02/2013 Page: 2 of 62 USA v. Scrushy Case No. 12-10694 Certificate of Interested Persons And Corporate Disclosure Statement Pursuant to Eleventh Circuit Rule 26.1-1, Appellant Richard M. Scrushy certifies that the following persons have an interest in the outcome of this case: Coody, Charles S., United States Magistrate Judge Fega, Stephen, former Assistant United States Attorney Franklin, Louis V., Acting United States Attorney Fuller, Mark E., District Judge, Middle District of Alabama Hinkle, Robert L., District Judge, Northern District of Florida Jenkins, James K., Attorney for Richard Scrushy Leach, Arthur W., Attorney for Richard Scrushy Morgan Stanley (symbol MS) Moore, Leslie V., Attorney for Richard Scrushy Pilger, Richard C., Department of Justice, Criminal Division Romano, John-Alexander, Department
    [Show full text]
  • CLE 1 04Globalhale&Dorr FIN
    GLOBAL COMPLIANCE | In the Twilight Zone PARALLEL PROSECUTIONS AND THEIR COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES Parallel criminal and SEC prosecution presents new risks for companies—and complicated questions for their general counsel. BY STEPHEN A. JONAS AND JONATHAN A. SHAPIRO resumably no one from seized documents from its execu- IN BRIEF HealthSouth was in the tives’ offices as part of an investi- PAnn Arbor lecture hall in gation that later culminated in An unprecedented spike in SEC-related November 2002, when the the first criminal prosecution for NEWSCOM.COM criminal cases demonstrates that Securities and Exchange Com- a violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley prime example—but by no parallel prosecutions may be here to mission’s enforcement chief certification requirements. The means the only one—of the stay. GCs facing such an investigation delivered the message to Univer- other shoe dropped the follow- government’s willingness to or prosecution should: sity of Michigan law professors ing day, when the SEC filed a bring parallel prosecutions: • Recognize the warning signs of a and students that “it’s a whole civil enforcement action against WorldCom, Enron, Qwest, potentially serious inquiry new ball game.” Instead of the company and then-CEO Adelphia, Rite Aid, and • Think disclosure “cajoling” criminal prosecutors Richard Scrushy, and a federal Imclone/Martha Stewart are • Assume that multiple agencies are into bringing securities cases, court entered a temporary just a few of the others. collaborating in the investigation director Stephen Cutler restraining order escrowing General counsel should expect • Understand that parallel does not explained that his Enforcement “extraordinary payments” by the the SEC and U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Financial Statement Magic: an Insider's Account of a $2.8 Billion
    Feature Financial Statement Magic: An Insider’s Account of a $2.8 Billion Fraud An interview with Aaron Beam, Former Chief Financial Officer and Co-Founder of HealthSouth the good life in lush homes and later, in Executive Summary stark federal prison cells, as punishment An extraordinary success and an unimaginable failure, HealthSouth, a rehabilitation for their crimes. Here is New Perspectives’ and outpatient surgery company, was a high-flyer and darling of Wall Street. interview with Aaron Beam. Started in 1984 by Richard Scrushy and three partners, HealthSouth’s success was NP: When exposed, the $2.8 billion the thing American dreams are made of. Starting humbly, with a single outpatient HealthSouth fraud was one of the largest rehabilitation center, the company grew exponentially to over $3.5 billion in annual corporate mis-doings in American sales. business history. Perhaps the first Midway through 1996, after meeting Wall Street analysts’ expectations for ten years question that should be asked is: “Could (40 straight quarters), the veneer of this success was wearing away. It was time to the fraud have been prevented if you report lower than expected earnings. Or, was it? Thus began a six-year period of and/or the HealthSouth Board opposed cooking the books, to the tune of $2.8 billion, and the unwinding of an American or challenged Scrushy during those early business Cinderella story. years?” AB: If the challenges had come, I am not ichard Scrushy’s rags to riches story As a HealthSouth co-founder he became sure the company would have ever gone R begins in a trailer park during his a multi-millionaire.
    [Show full text]
  • In the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Southern Division
    Case 2:03-cv-01500-KOB -TMP Document 1580 Filed 03/31/09 Page 1 of 46 FILED 2009 Apr-01 AM 08:23 U.S. DISTRICT COURT N.D. OF ALABAMA IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA SOUTHERN DIVISION In re HEALTHSOUTH ] CORPORATION SECURITIES ] LITIGATION ] Master File No. CV-03-BE-1500-S ] This Document Relates To: ] All Actions. ] ] In re HEALTHSOUTH ] CORPORATION STOCKHOLDER ] Consolidated Case No. LITIGATION ] CV-03-BE-1501-S ] This Document Relates To: ] All Actions. ] ] In re HEALTHSOUTH ] CORPORATION BONDHOLDER ] Consolidated Case No. LITIGATION ] CV-03-BE-1502-S ] This Document Relates To: ] CLASS ACTION All Actions. ] ] MEMORANDUM OPINION These consolidated securities fraud cases come before the court on motions to certify classes. The Bondholder Plaintiffs1 seek certification of the following class: All persons and entities who, during the period beginning July 30, 1999 through and including March 18, 2003 (the “Bondholder 1Lead Plaintiff The Retirement Systems of Alabama (“RSA”) and other named Plaintiffs, the Houston Firefighters Relief and Retirement Fund (“HFRRF”) and the State Universities Retirement System of Illinois (“SURS”) seek to represent the proposed class. 1 Case 2:03-cv-01500-KOB -TMP Document 1580 Filed 03/31/09 Page 2 of 46 Class Period”), purchased or otherwise acquired the March 1998 Registered and Unregistered Notes, the June 1998 Registered and Unregistered Notes, the September 2000 Registered and Unregistered Notes, the February 2001 Registered and Unregistered Notes, the September 2001 Registered and Unregistered Notes, or the May 2002 Registered and Unregistered Notes and who were damaged thereby; and All Persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired the September 2000, February 2001, September 2001, or May 2002 Registered Notes of HealthSouth pursuant or traceable to their respective registration statements and who were damaged thereby.2 Bondholder Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification (doc.
    [Show full text]
  • Supreme Court of the United States ______
    No. 11- _________________________________________________ In The Supreme Court of the United States ___________ RICHARD M. SCRUSHY, Petitioner, v. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent. ___________ On Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ___________ PETITION FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI ___________ JAMES K. JENKINS BRUCE S. ROGOW MALOY JENKINS Counsel of Record PARKER BRUCE S. ROGOW, P.A. 75 Fourteenth Street, NW 500 East Broward Blvd., 25th Floor Suite 1930 Atlanta, GA 30309 Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33394 (404) 875-2700 (954) 767-8909 [email protected] [email protected] Counsel for Petitioner _________________________________________________ i QUESTION PRESENTED I. In the context of a First Amendment protected contribution to an issue advocacy campaign, does the McCormick v. United States, 500 U.S. 257, 273 (1991), holding that campaign contributions cannot constitute bribery unless “the payments are made in return for an explicit promise or undertaking by the official to perform or not to perform an official act” mean “explicit,” or can something less than proof of an “explicit promise” be sufficient to sustain a conviction? ii TABLE OF CONTENTS PETITION FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI . 1 OPINION BELOW......................... 1 JURISDICTION........................... 1 STATUTORY PROVISIONS INVOLVED . 2 STATEMENT OF THE CASE AND FACTS . 5 A. The Procedural History, Charges, Conviction and Sentence . 5 B. The Facts ...................... 7 REASONS FOR GRANTING THE PETITION . 10 I. THE DECISION BELOW CONFLICTS WITH McCORMICK v. UNITED STATES, MISUSES EVANS v. UNITED STATES, AND PRESENTS THE IMPORTANT FIRST AMENDMENT QUESTION OF THE PRECISE PROOF REQUIREMENT IN AN ISSUE- ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION BRIBERY CASE.
    [Show full text]
  • Healthsouth Corporation
    Journal of Business Case Studies – January/February 2009 Volume 5, Number 1 Healthsouth Corporation: The First Case Against A Company Under The Sarbanes-Oxley Act Zhemin Wang, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, USA Zhijun Lin, Hong Kong Baptist University, China Sophia Ju, Edmonds Community College, USA ABSTRACT HealthSouth Corporation, one of the nation’s largest healthcare providers, was the first company charged under the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. HealthSouth’s CEO, Richard Scrushy, and 16 of its executives were indicted for allegedly using a sophisticated scheme to overstate the company’s earnings by as much as $2.7 billion between 1986 and 2002. Fifteen of the sixteen indicted executives pleaded guilty and another was convicted by jurors. After five months of court hearing, Scrushy was acquitted of all criminal charges. However, he remains a defendant in 40 cases filed by former HealthSouth investors and creditors. This case is based on court materials and other publicly available information and has been used in several undergraduate and MBA courses. The case and the accompanying teaching notes have proven to be an effective tool in teaching students the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and in helping students become more ethically conscious. Keywords: HealthSouth PART ONE ealthSouth Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, was founded in 1984 by its Chairman and CEO Richard Scrushy. Under Scrushy’s leadership, the company had enjoyed exponential growth H throughout the 1990s. Analysts and shareholders alike praised Scrushy for turning the company from a regional player into one of the nation's largest healthcare providers. By the end of 2002, HealthSouth employed 51,000 people at 1,700 outpatient surgery, rehabilitation, and diagnostic imaging centers, rehabilitation hospitals, and acute-care medical centers located in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Saudi Arabia.
    [Show full text]