Category Archives: News

Lawsuit accuses IBM of Ponzi scheme, seeks more than $100M – Triangle Business Journal

23 Wednesday Jun 2010

Posted by in News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Two IBM executives based in Research Triangle Park are among the defendants named in a federal lawsuit brought by a small Philadelphia-area technology company that claims IBM orchestrated a Ponzi scheme that defrauded the company of more than $12 million.

The suit is seeking more than $100 million from IBM (NYSE: IBM).

King of Prussia, Pa.-based Devon IT filed the suit on June 16 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The companies had been working in a partnership developing a system that consisted of IBM blade servers and a desktop device and software developed by Devon.

In the complaint, Devon claims IBM took the money Devon invested in the partnership and used it to boost earnings figures for Big Blue’s Systems and Technology Group. The complaint alleges that IBM continued the scheme by bringing in new partners to invest in projects. Thomas Bradicich and James Gargan, two RTP-based IBM vice presidents, are among the four individual IBM defendants named in the suit. IBM has not yet filed an answer to the complaint.

Devon attorneys told the Philadelphia Inquirer that besides the $12 million the company invested in IBM the company spent another $20 million to support the products that IBM abandoned. Devon says it is seeking triple the damages, as is permitted under federal racketeering laws.

Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM employs about 10,000 in RTP.

Reporter e-mail: fvinluan@bizjournals.com

via Lawsuit accuses IBM of Ponzi scheme, seeks more than $100M – Triangle Business Journal.

Graduated Driver’s Licensing Programs Reduce Fatal Crashes

16 Wednesday Jun 2010

Posted by in NC Law, News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

According to a recent study by John Hopkins, graduated driver’s licensing programs reduce fatal crashes by 11% among 16-year-old drivers. All states except North Dakota have some form of graduated licensing requirements.

Learner Stage Intermediate Stage Full Privilege
Min. Age
(Yrs./Mos.)		 Required
Supervised
Driving Hours
(Night Hours)
Min. Age
(Yrs./ Mos.)		 Min. Dura-
tion
(Mos.)		 Min. Age
(Yrs./Mos.)		 Nighttime Driving Restriction Passenger
Restriction*
(* family members exempt)
NorthCarolina 15 12 16 9 p.m. – 5 a.m. No more than 1 pass. <21*;if family member <21 is passenger,

no other non-family memb. pass. <21

 16 / 6 None

In addition, it is against the law in N.C. for all drivers to text while driving and it’s against the law for those under 18 to use a cell phone while driving. For more information on your state laws see

http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/license_laws.html

Ever Tell a Dirty Joke at Work? (via Tomlarsen’s Weblog)

10 Thursday Jun 2010

Posted by in News

≈ Leave a comment

Gretchen by Marc Johns at http://draw.vox.com/

Many people and businesses don’t know what is covered under their insurance policy. If you are one of the these people you need to sit down with your insurance policy and actually read it. You might be surprised to find that you company may not be covered in a sexual harassment law suit.

Who has not repeated or told a dirty joke at work? It happens all the time from employee to employee and from supervisor to employee. Truth be told, this is really a form of sexual harassment and could cause a huge problem for an employer. The problem for an employer is, your business liability policy covers you for injury other’s occur due to your work and/or negligence. It does NOT cover you for harassment, discrimination, hostile workplace or … Read More

via Tomlarsen’s Weblog

Ship Management Firm Fined $850,000 for Illegally Dumping Waste in Violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS)

09 Wednesday Jun 2010

Posted by in NC Law, Negligence, News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

In a recent decision, Judge Dever III for the Eastern District of N.C. fined Cooperative Success Maritime S.A. $850,000 for illegally dumping waste into the ocean during its transatlantic voyages. The company will also have to pay $150,000 to the Fish and Wildlife Fund.

WASHINGTON—Cooperative Success Maritime S.A., the operator of the M/T Chem Faros, a 21,145 gross-ton ocean-going cargo ship that regularly transported cargo between foreign ports and the United States, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in federal court for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), and to making material false statements, the Justice Department announced. U.S. District Court Judge James C. Dever III for the Ea … Read More

via USA CONFIDENTIAL

Insurers Gain Reasons to Raise Rates (via SHINKLEink)

07 Monday Jun 2010

Posted by in Insurance, News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

As oil continues to flow out of Deepwater Horizon, experts estimate the oil may reach the coast of North and South Carolina by the end of the month. Insurers are already estimating billions in cost which could increase as business owners begin filing suit.

Patrick Semansky - AP

Publication Date 06/07/2010 Source: Dow Jones News Service WSJ(6/7) Insurers Gain Reasons To Raise Rates (From THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)For commercial insurers, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the volcanic-ash disaster may prove relatively light in claims costs but may give the firms justification to raise premiums for some types of coverage. An explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in April, and the subsequent leak that has since become … Read More

via SHINKLEink

Detecting Fraud With An Insurance Data Warehouse (via Business Guidance Systems™)

04 Friday Jun 2010

Posted by in Insurance, News

≈ Leave a comment

Insurance fraud in North Carolina is costing billions. According to Wayne Goodman, approximately 10% of all claims in NC are fraudulent totally nearly $120 billion in loses. While it may seem like this in issue that only affects the insurance industry it is not. Consumers pay for the fraudulent claims in the form of higher insurance premiums.

We all pay for the cost of crime, and preventing it is much more appealing for insurers than accounting for it after the fact. Insurance losses related to crime and abuse are factored into companies’ rates as a cost of doing business. Relatively few instances of fraud affect the balance of the companies’ customers. Insurers have implemented sophisticated and powerful computer systems to try to accurately identify the losses as soon as possible af … Read More

via Business Guidance Systems™

N.C. Creates a Task Force on Childhood Obesity

04 Friday Jun 2010

Posted by in News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Childhood obesity is a growing concern for both parents and the government.

“Results from the 2007-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), using measured heights and weights, indicate that an estimated 17 percent of children and adolescents ages 2-19 years are obese.” via Obesity and Overweight for Professionals: Childhood | DNPAO | CDC.

“Being overweight during childhood and adolescence increases the risk of developing high cholesterol, hypertension, respiratory ailments, orthopedic problems, depression and type 2 diabetes as a youth. One disease of particular concern is Type 2 diabetes, which is linked to overweight and obesity and has increased dramatically in children and adolescents, particularly in American Indian, African American and Hispanic/Latino populations.[9] The hospital costs alone associated with childhood obesity were estimated at $127 million during 1997–1999 (in 2001 constant U.S. dollars), up from $35 million during 1979–1981.[10]” via Childhood Obesity.

Given the growing concern, the N.C. legislature has formed a 12 member task force to study and recommend strategies for encouraging healthy eating and increased physical activity in children.