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Friday, March 29, 2024 | Back issues
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Microtune Loses Bid |to Quash Subpoena

(CN) - A federal judge in Dallas denied Microtune's request to quash a subpoena against a law firm that helped the SEC investigate allegations of Microtune's stock option backdating fraud.

Douglas Bartek and Nancy Richardson, Microtune's former CEO and CFO, subpoenaed Andrews Kurth LLP, seeking 510 documents from the investigation. During the SEC investigation of Microtune, "Andrews Kurth reported that Microtune engaged in improper stock option granting and exercise practices prior to August 12, 2003, (and) that Bartek directed the improper practices while he was CEO."

Based on the investigation, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Microtune, Bartek and Richardson, and quickly reached a settlement in which Microtune agreed to a permanent injunction. Bartek and Richardson remain defendants in the SEC lawsuit.

In response to Bartek and Richardson's subpoena motion, Microtune filed a motion to quash the subpoena on the grounds that certain documents are protected by the attorney-client privilege doctrine."

U.S. Disrict Judge Jeff Kaplan ordered the subpoena against Andrews Kurth to go forward, finding that Microtune failed to prove any specific "attorney-client privilege."

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