The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California announced that Jerome Schneider, 53, a resident of Vancouver, B.C. Canada, was sentenced to six months in prison this week by Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco for his role in a conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Schneider was ordered to pay a fine of $4,000 and a $100 special assessment. He had previously paid $100,000 in restitution. Mr.

December may bring more than holiday cheer for many Americans. A survey released today reveals that holiday parties in homes and offices may result in trips to the courtroom for some. A nationwide survey assessed Americans' vulnerability to common legal pitfalls during the holiday season. Harris Interactive conducted the survey.Hosting a Party at Home Involves More Than Planning A MenuNearly one-in-four (24%) adults do not know that a party host who serves alcohol to a clearly inebriated guest may be legally responsible if that person goes on to hurt or kill someone in a car accident.

Wracked with debt and forced to sell off property to pay its employees, California's King City has filed suit against its former auditor, Moss, Levy & Hartzheim of Santa Maria, the Monterey Herald reported.

Starting December 1, 2004 consumers will begin to have more tools at their disposal to fight identity theft, protect against credit card fraud, and check-up on the health of their total credit picture under a new federal law. The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2004 (FACT Act) was signed into law in December 2003 giving residents of the western part of the United States the right to a free copy of their credit report each year.

Arguments that the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate reform law is unconstitutionally vague did not convince a federal judge, who has rejected Richard Scrushy's claims in his HealthSouth fraud case.Attorneys for Scrushy, HealthSouth's former chief executive, said the law should not be part of the indictment accusing him of fraud, the Associated Press reported. U.S. District Judge Karon O.

The Justice Department on Wednesday asked a federal court in Chicago to stop William J. Benson, of South Holland, IL, from selling an allegedly fraudulent tax scheme and from unlawfully interfering with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

In a case of aiding and abetting a corporate fraud, former KPMG consultant Larry Alan Rodda pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges Tuesday, admitting he signed phony contracts with Peregrine Systems intended to boost Peregrine's earnings, the San Diego Union-Tribute reported. The contracts, worth $25 million, were part of an elaborate accounting fraud that was uncovered in 2002. Eleven people were indicted last month and Rodda, 54, is the sixth person to plead guilty on federal charges, the Union-Tribune reported.His attorney, Craig C.

The Justice Department has issued a subpoena to Merck & Co.

A Disney shareholder lawsuit is revealing a decidedly unglamorous picture of Hollywood, where threats and manipulation are considered business as usual.Michael Ovitz, the former president of the Walt Disney Co., has testified not only about the deep divisions in the company but also about the gritty reality of the entertainment business."From the time I started in the entertainment business, every network and every studio has threatened to sue every other company on a daily basis," Ovitz said during the trial, according to the New York Times.