SEC asks judge to cut defense's questions
By Jeff Smith, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published December 21, 2007 at 12:05 a.m.
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Federal regulators on Thursday asked a judge to limit the questions that can be posed by five former Qwest executives in a civil fraud lawsuit.
Attorneys representing the Securities and Exchange Commission argued in a U.S. District Court brief that SEC staff discussions about accounting policy are protected by privilege and shouldn't be shared with defendants.
Regulators also said the defendants have mischaracterized the evidence by claiming that outside auditor Arthur Ander- sen approved of Qwest's accounting of fiber-optic capacity sales. The SEC pointed to a deposition that indicated Arthur Andersen wasn't aware of side agreements Qwest made with customers that invalidated the accounting.
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