News Release©1999, CCH INCORPORATED.

Three top executives with Computer Associates, the popular maker of Accpac and other software products, have been ordered by a Deleware judge to return half of more than $1 billion in stock because the court ruled the executives improperly received the stock in 1998.The returned stock totals 9.5 million in shares, and represents part of a 20.25 million share grant made to the three executives based on a compensation package approved by shareholders in 1995.Computer Associates' attorneys said the company will review the ruling and make a decision whether t

The online continuing education revolution is here BIG TIME. While there are many outlets over the Internet for the CPA to receive his or her CPE credits, the wired world also has paved the way for learning outside of the accounting arena for those who wish to enrich their knowledge.Let's talk time. The most popular reason we surf the Internet to take what is known as the "e-class" is a time famine in not being able to attend classes in person.

CPAs should be advised that any taxpayer who mistakenly converted a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA last year, but later found out they were ineligible for the Roth, have until the end of 1999 to change their Roth IRA contributions or conversions back to traditional IRAs.The original IRS filing deadline, known as recharacterizations, was October 15.

Early Internet adopters remember when registering domain names was EASY and the cost was FREE.Just a few years later, the Web invaded our lives like gangbusters, and registering a domain cost money. Still, there was only one place to register at the government-approved company known as Network Solutions.There is good news in the fact that $70 still is the going rate for an annual fee, but times have changed. Network Solutions needed help and the government finally granted other organizations the same rights as the original provider had.

The ability to accept commissions is nothing new for the accounting profession. For many years, CPAs have accepted commissions as part of their line of services in brokering securities, insurance and other savings instruments--in harmony with their own accounting services.Where to draw the line and make the distinction for the public is another matter altogether. There is a substantial gray area involved.

Don’t save your best sales pitch for a prospect. With a tight labor market, you need to sell your firm to your top recruits, too. Take a look around your firm and make a list of what’s “good” about it. Ask your employees if you want to know what's "great" about your firm.From casual days to flexible time schedules, there’s plenty your firm “offers” its employees. But don’t stop there. Be sure to make a laundry list of benefits for your new employee and quantify them in the offer letter. These “benefits” can really add up.

SAP is prepared to defend its product with increased customer attention and a new set of consultants called "global overseers."Over the past week, the AccountingWeb newswire has run several stories regarding Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and the alleged mishandling of installations by PeopleSoft/Deloitte & Touche.

As reported here last week, Big 5 CPA firm Ernst & Young this week announced that it has entered into a landscape-altering alliance this week with a new DC law firm called McKee Nelson Ernst & Young LLP. This integrated professional services model has been in place in many countries around the world, but until now has never been available in this country.