Ernst Young Company

An Orange County Superior Court jury Thursday ordered the accounting firm of Arthur Young & Co. to pay $5 million to Union Bank of San Francisco for negligence in preparing financial statements on a small Los Angeles company. Bank officials testified at the Santa Ana trial that they depended on the accountants' financial statements when loaning about $10 million to Small World Greetings, a gift company that later went bankrupt. The bank was seeking to recover $6.

Federal regulators probably will add Lee Henkel, a former top U.S. thrift regulator, as a defendant in the government's $2.7-billion fraud and racketeering lawsuit against former owners and operators of Lincoln Savings & Loan, a government source said Monday. Henkel and his former law firm, Troutman, Sanders, Lockerman & Ashmore in Atlanta, are two of at least nine major law firms, accounting firms and others that the Resolution Trust Corp.

Ernst & Young, the giant accounting firm, has tentatively agreed to pay the federal government more than $40 million to settle allegations that it was negligent in audits of Lincoln Savings & Loan before the thrift's collapse in 1989, sources said Tuesday. The settlement comes as the government was preparing to add the firm and one of its former partners as defendants in a $1.7-billion civil fraud and racketeering lawsuit stemming from the failure of Irvine-based Lincoln.

The state Board of Accountancy is seeking to revoke or suspend the California license of Ernst & Young, one of the nation's largest accounting firms, alleging "gross negligence" in audits of Lincoln Savings & Loan in Irvine and its parent company. The administrative action, brought by the board's staff, charges that Ernst & Young failed to follow proper accounting procedures in audits of the 1987 financial statements of Lincoln and its parent firm, American Continental Corp. of Phoenix.

The federal government will name the Ernst & Young accounting firm and a major New York law firm as new defendants in its $1.1-billion, civil racketeering lawsuit against former savings and loan owner Charles H. Keating Jr., a government source said Wednesday. The amended complaint, which will name at least six new defendants, is expected to be filed by the Resolution Trust Court in federal court in Phoenix within two weeks, according to the source, who asked not to be identified.

The state Board of Accountancy is seeking to revoke or suspend the California license of Ernst & Young, one of the nation's largest accounting firms, for alleged "gross negligence" in audits of Lincoln Savings & Loan in Irvine and its parent company. The administrative action, brought by the board's staff, charges that Ernst & Young failed to follow proper accounting procedures in audits of the 1987 financial statements of Lincoln and its parent firm, American Continental Corp. in Phoenix.

State Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp filed suit Wednesday against Arthur Young & Co., charging that the accounting firm helped defraud thousands of investors who bought more than $250 million worth of American Continental Corp. bonds. The bonds are now worthless, and American Continental has filed for bankruptcy protection. Arthur Young was the company's independent auditor and has since merged with Ernst & Whinney to become Ernst & Young. Also named in the suit were Charles H. Keating Jr.

The move by California officials to seek a revocation of the accounting license of Ernst & Young may further tarnish the firm's reputation but is unlikely to result in major damage to the firm's operations in the long run, industry officials said Wednesday.

The federal government will name the Ernst & Young accounting firm and a major New York law firm as new defendants in its $1.1-billion, civil racketeering lawsuit against former savings and loan owner Charles H. Keating Jr., a government source said Wednesday. The amended complaint, which will name at least six new defendants, is expected to be filed by the Resolution Trust Court in federal court in Phoenix within two weeks, according to the source, who asked not to be identified.

The federal government will name the Ernst & Young accounting firm and a major New York law firm as new defendants in its $1.1-billion civil racketeering lawsuit against former savings and loan owner Charles H. Keating Jr., a government source said Wednesday. The amended complaint, which will name at least six new defendants, is expected to be filed by the Resolution Trust Corp. in federal court in Phoenix within two weeks, said the source, who asked not to be identified.

The move by California officials to seek a revocation of the accounting license of Ernst & Young may further tarnish the firm's reputation but is unlikely to result in major damage to the firm's operations in the long run, industry officials said Wednesday.

The move by California officials to seek a revocation of the accounting license of Ernst & Young may tarnish the firm's reputation a little more but is unlikely to result in major damage to the firm's operations in the long run, industry officials said Wednesday.

The state Board of Accountancy is seeking to revoke or suspend the California license of Ernst & Young, one of the nation's largest accounting firms, alleging "gross negligence" in audits of Lincoln Savings & Loan in Irvine and its parent company. The administrative action, brought by the board's staff, charges that Ernst & Young failed to follow proper accounting procedures in audits of the 1987 financial statements of Lincoln and its parent firm, American Continental Corp. of Phoenix.

The state Board of Accountancy is seeking to revoke or suspend the California license of Ernst & Young, one of the nation's largest accounting firms, for alleged "gross negligence" in audits of Lincoln Savings & Loan in Irvine and its parent company. The administrative action, brought by the board's staff, charges that Ernst & Young failed to follow proper accounting procedures in audits of the 1987 financial statements of Lincoln and its parent firm, American Continental Corp. in Phoenix.

The move by California officials to seek a revocation of the accounting license of Ernst & Young may tarnish the firm's reputation a little more but is unlikely to result in major damage to the firm's operations in the long run, industry officials said Wednesday.

Federal regulators probably will add Lee Henkel, a former top U.S. thrift regulator, as a defendant in the government's $2.7-billion fraud and racketeering lawsuit against former owners and operators of Lincoln Savings & Loan, a government source said Monday. Henkel and his former law firm, Troutman, Sanders, Lockerman & Ashmore in Atlanta, are two of at least nine major law firms, accounting firms and others that the Resolution Trust Corp.

Failure of the assessor's office to fully implement recommendations made two years ago could cost Los Angeles County more than $9 million annually in lost interest, according to an audit report issued Monday. Conducted by the public accounting firm of Ernst & Young, the audit determined that the county could lose an estimated $9.1 million in annual net interest because of processing delays and problem billings, and an additional $2.

An administrative law judge has barred Ernst & Young, the nation's largest accounting firm, from accepting most new business in the New York region for 45 days, ruling that the firm's predecessor improperly overstated a company's income. In a decision released Thursday, Jerome Soffer also censured managing partner Michael Ferrante for unprofessional conduct over questionable 1980 and 1981 audits of U.S. Surgical Corp.