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I believe that Dan Ackman is the same reporter who is covering the Enron
story. Interesting as Taubman is a funder and advisory board chair at
Harvard, while Winokur on Enron is a Harvard Corporation board member and
Harvard's most important hedge fund was shorting Enron's stock.
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http://www.forbes.com/2001/12/05/1205taubman.html
Court Report
Guilty! Jury Drops Hammer On Taubman
Dan Ackman, Forbes.com, 12.05.01, 6:20 PM ET
NEW YORK - A. Alfred Taubman, the former chairman of Sotheby's Holdings who
has a personal fortune in excess of $500 million, was judged guilty of
price-fixing today by a Manhattan federal court jury. That's the "who,"
"what," "where" and "when." The "why" resides somewhere in Taubman's own
heart.
A. Alfred Taubman
The eight-man-four-woman jury deliberated for less than two days on the case
involving allegations of a price-fixing scheme between Sotheby's (nyse:
BID - news - people) and archrival Christie's. It decided that Taubman, 76,
masterminded the plot along with his Christie's counterpart Sir Anthony
Tennant to fix commissions in a way that cheated art sellers out of millions
of dollars.
Robert Fiske, Taubman's main lawyer, repeatedly asked why his client, so
wealthy and with such a sterling national reputation based on his
philanthropy, would ever engage in conduct that would put his name and
liberty at risk? That remains a fine question.
But the evidence of his guilt was overwhelming, starting with proof of a
series of private one-on-one meetings with Tennant that Taubman hid even
from Sotheby's executives and his closest associates.
Taubman, still Sotheby's majority shareholder, contended that he knew
nothing of what he claimed was collusion between then Sotheby's Chief
Executive Diana "Dede" Brooks and her Christie's counterpart, Christopher
Davidge. But he never took the stand to explain why he met with Tennant so
often and in private, and his army of lawyers failed to come up with a
plausible alternative explanation.
Brooks was the only co-conspirator who could testify that she spoke directly
with Taubman. Fiske argued, though, that she was a practiced, remorseless
liar who signed a deal to rat out Taubman to save herself from prison. But
Brooks' testimony was backed by that of Davidge, who also provided documents
recording his meetings with Tennant. While the documents rarely referred to
Taubman specifically, the totality of the evidence made it impossible to
believe that he was uninvolved. Tennant, who lives near London, could not be
extradited for trial in the U.S. since price-fixing is not a criminal
offense under British law and he has denied wrongdoing.
Taubman's lawyers argued that he was not even concerned with Sotheby's
bottom line. But Chief Federal Prosecutor John Greene called the notion of a
businessman of Taubman's stature not knowing, "ridiculous." Beyond his own
fantastic success in the shopping mall business, Taubman also served on the
boards of Macy's and Chase Manhattan Bank. He also owned at one time the A&W
Root Beer fast-food chain, the Woodward & Lothrop department-store chain and
the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League.
His own witnesses testified that Taubman called the Sotheby's CEO, either
Brooks or her predecessor, several times a day; that he attended board
meetings without fail; and that he would call Sotheby's executives about
matters as minor as the lighting of a picture in one of the auction houses'
catalogs.
Taubman becomes one of the wealthiest, most prominent businessmen ever to be
found guilty of a felony. He faces up to three years in prison, though
considerations such as his age will likely dictate a lesser term.
The federal antitrust prosecutors demonstrated that Taubman was frustrated
by the erosion of the auction house's profits. After the fat years of the
late 1980s, Sotheby's sales fell to $1.1 billion in 1992 from $2.9 billion
in 1989. Profits fell almost to zero. The value of Taubman's stake in the
company fell by nearly $300 million, a sum that was significant even to him,
despite a net worth that climbed as high as $1.2 billion.
Taubman then seized on the ascension of Tennant as Christie's new
chairman--and on the naming of Brooks as his new CEO. Like Taubman, Tennant,
the former chairman of the giant British distillery Guinness, was a
successful businessman, "with a keen eye on the bottom line," Greene said in
his closing argument.
Taubman bought one of the world's great auction houses after years as a
collector of fine art. He was also generous with his money and his time,
giving to the arts, education, medical research and a variety of Jewish
causes.
By all accounts, Taubman is a self-made man of immense achievement and
generosity. But now, at age 76, attached to his name will be a black mark:
convicted felon.
More From Forbes
Taubman Was Meek, But Hungry, Defense Says
Taubman Log: Professions Of Ignorance
Taubman Had No Head For Figures
Taubman Log: Taking Ethics Quite Seriously
Brooks Claims Taubman Initiated Price-Fixing
Taubman Log: Cat And Mouse
Taubman Log: 'I Need To Speak To My Special Friend'
Taubman Log: 'Possible Meeting With A Gentleman'
At Trial, Taubman Will Deny Wrongdoing
Who's Who In The Sotheby's Price-Fixing Trial
Time Line: The Rise Of Christie's And Sotheby's
Related stories
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Taubman Had No Head For Figures
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Online Out Of Line At AOL
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At Trial, Taubman Will Deny Wrongdoing
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http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/taubmancenter/
THE TAUBMAN CENTER FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT focuses on public policy
and management in the U.S. federal system. Through research, participation
in the Kennedy School�s graduate training and executive education programs,
sponsorship of conferences and workshops, and interaction with policy makers
and public managers, the Center�s affiliated faculty and researchers
contribute to public deliberations about key domestic policy issues and the
process of governance. While the Center has a particular concern with state
and local institutions, it is broadly interested in domestic policy and
intergovernmental relations, including the role of the federal government.
The Center�s research program deals with a range of specific policy areas,
including urban development and land use, transportation, environmental
protection, education, labor-management relations and public finance. The
Center is also concerned with issues of governance, political and
institutional leadership, innovation, and applications of information and
telecommunications technology to public management problems. The Center has
also established an initiative to assist all levels of government in
preparing for the threat of domestic terrorism.
The Center makes its research and curriculum materials widely available
through various publications, including books, research monographs, working
papers, and case studies. In addition, the Taubman Center is affiliated
with two new institutes and sponsors several special programs:
THE INSTITUTE FOR GOVERNMENT INNOVATION, a new entity, funded by the Ford
Foundation, will serve as the hub for a global network of public-sector
innovators and other interested practitioners, students, policy analysts,
and journalists concerned with excellence in government. The Institute,
which is affiliated with the Taubman Center, will incorporate and build upon
the success of the Taubman Center's Innovations in American Government
Program, which the Ford Foundation has funded since its inception in 1986.
In an annual national competition, that program awards grants of $100,000 to
innovative federal, state, and local government programs. It also conducts
research and develops teaching case studies on innovation in government.
THE RAPPAPORT INSTITUTE FOR GREATER BOSTON is a new entity that focuses on
improved governance and public policy in the Greater Boston region. The
Institute, which is affiliated with the Taubman Center, coordinates
internship and fellows programs, develops a wide range of research projects
or practitioners, convenes public forums, provides comprehensive information
on the region, and offers workshops to train people in public service.
THE PROGRAM ON EDUCATION POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, a joint initiative of the
Taubman Center and Harvard's Center for American Political Studies, brings
together experts on elementary and secondary education with specialists in
governance and public management to examine strategies for educational
reform and evaluate important educational experiments.
THE SAGUARO SEMINAR FOR CIVIC ENGAGEMENT IN AMERICA is dedicated to building
new civil institutions and restoring our stock of civic capital.
THE EXECUTIVE SESSION ON DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS joins senior government
officials and academic experts to determine how federal, state and local
agencies can best prepare for terrorist attacks within U.S. borders.
THE PROGRAM ON LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS links union leaders, senior
managers and faculty specialists in identifying promising new approaches to
labor management.
THE INTERNET AND CONSERVATION PROJECT, an initiative of the Taubman Center
with additional support from the Kennedy School's Environment and Natural
Resources Program, focuses on the constructive and disruptive impacts of new
communications and transportation networks on the landscape and
biodiversity, as well as their implication for the conservation community.
Taubman Center of Kennedy School of Harvard University: Chair of Advisory
Board:
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A. Alfred Taubman, chair of the board, is the founder and chairman of the
Taubman Company, one of the nation�s leading real estate developers and
operators of regional shopping centers. He is also majority shareholder of
Sotheby�s Holding, Inc., parent company of Sotheby�s, the world�s oldest and
largest fine arts auctioneers. In addition to establishing and funding the
Taubman Center, he established and funded the University of Michigan�s
Program in American Institutions and Brown University�s Public Policy and
American Institutions Program. He is the principal benefactor of the
University of Michigan�s A. Alfred Taubman Health Care Center and its A.
Alfred Taubman Medical Library. He is active in civic and cultural affairs
as well, serving, among other posts, as president of the City of Detroit�s
Arts Commission, chairman emeritus of The Archives of American Art at the
Smithsonian Institution, a director of Detroit Renaissance, Inc., and a
member of the State of Michigan Gaming Commission.
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Affiliated faculty at Taubman Center include Elaine Kamark, former Gore aide
in the Clinton Administration:
http://ksgnotes1.harvard.edu/degreeprog/courses.nsf/aba163361f7adf7485256766
00686c40/a83d82d63581228e85256944000fa8a3?OpenDocument&Highlight=0,kamarck
Short Bio
Faculty Index
Faculty Homepage for:
Elaine Kamarck
Lecturer in Public Policy
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Elaine Kamarck, Lecturer in Public Policy, returns to the Kennedy School
from a year's leave of absence during which she was the senior policy
advisor to the Gore campaign. Previously, at the KSG, she directed the
Visions of Governance for the 21st Century Program and was Faculty Adviser
to the Innovations in American Government Awards Program. Prior to joining
the Kennedy School, Kamarck served as Senior Policy Adviser to Vice
President Gore in the White House, where she created and managed the Clinton
Administration's National Performance Review (NPR), also known as the
Reinventing Government project. She teaches API-416, "Twenty First Century
Government and the Emergence of New Forms of Governance," and STM-335,
"Public Management Reform and Innovation: A Comparative Survey."
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