Re-examining the Causes of Corporate Securities Fraud

This book compares two groups of companies, litigated and non-litigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The comparison was made in terms of size, financial performance, top management, and board structure, while controlling for industry and geographic location. The case group consists of 188 companies litigated by the SEC for securities fraud between 1999 and 2003. Another 188 companies which never have been litigated by the SEC served as the control group. The data were drawn from the COMPUSTAT North America database and the companies'' annual reports and proxy statements which are available from the SEC website.