Legal News

Judge: Heads Must Roll Over Alleged Disclosure Gaffe

By Dan Slater

“Heads have to roll,” said U.S. District Judge Marilyn Patel, according to a transcript, after discovering that McAfee waited until the 11th hour — literally — to produce a chunk of e-mails in the criminal case against McAfee’s former general, who’s accused of improperly backdating stock options while at the company.

U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel, Nov. 30, 1992. (AP Photo/San Francisco Daily Journal, Sibylla Herbrich)

Kent Roberts’s trial was supposed to start yesterday, but Judge Patel scheduled a Thursday hearing for McAfee lawyers to explain the late disclosure. The documents — company emails that could exonerate Roberts, according to his lawyer — should’ve been turned over two years ago, said both the prosecutor and defense lawyers.

Here are reports from the WSJ and the Recorder.

“McAfee is as surprised as anyone by this turn of events,” a spokesman said in a written statement. He added that McAfee, which makes anti-virus and security software, discovered the additional documents Tuesday.

Lawyers with Wilson Sonsini who represent McAfee didn’t return the WSJ’s calls seeking comment, nor did an attorney with the firm Howrey who represents a special committee of the McAfee board that investigated options grants.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on September 18, 2008 (boomark / email).