Richardson Appointed to the Board

By Mark Evans | Published: March 30, 2009

From the surprising news file, Nortel said today it has appointed David Richardson to the board.

Richardson was the Canadian National Partner of Ernst & Young LLP’s corporate finance practice, and the senior partner with the accounting firm’s Corporate Recovery and Restructuring practice until his retirement from the partnership in 2002.

According to a press release, he has “extensive experience advising organizations with respect to business and financial restructurings and has provided such advice to governments, regulators, lenders and major public and private corporations throughout his career”.

Richardson is a director and Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors with ACE Aviation Holdings, and a Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Air Canada.

Nortel also announced that Dr. Manfred Bischoff has decided to step down as a director with Nortel Networks Corporation and Nortel Networks Limited.

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  • sick_sigma

    E&Y is the court appointed monitor for Nortel. So how is it that an employee of E&Y can take a job with the company he is supposed to be monitoring? Why is this not a conflict of interest?

  • NortelSouth

    According to Mark's post, he retires from E&Y in 2002…

  • S_O_S_This_is_HMS_Nortel

    What exactly does the BoD member bring to the whole proceeding ?
    They haven't done their job by hiring Z and let him runs the company into the ground…They should all step down…Shame !

  • protosphere

    How much influence does a board that sat on the voting audit committee to approve lotteries have over court approvals I wonder. Given their extensions and bonuses, quite a bit it seems! =)

    Why didn't they get Mulroney in as a member …maybe he could lobby government orders now he is no longer PM and its not a conflict of interest. Heck, the extra cash might help pay mum's new legal fees to keep the millions he sued for and questionably got 225K or was it 300K on cash he paid tax late…

    …never mind, they already have an ex-adgate Liberal finance minister on the board

    I guess E&Y is more fashionable given the times huh?

    …and no one from the OSC, EDC, or TSX? I am surprisied.=)

    Not that I was expecting them to spring Skilling or Ebbers as contenders but this almost makes me think that maybe Dunn might win his lawsuit in Canada after all =)

    hahaha… from E&Y…watch them try and feed us this is traditional and acceptable again … never mind conflict of interest eh? Sounds like there is no law against it, well not yet anyways. I wonder if their insurance company is getting antsy yet? =)

    E&Y?!!!… hahaha …Nortel, when will the punch lines ever cease, my ribs hurt, stop it yer kill'n me here…

  • protosphere

    and my sentiment exactly… sorry I read your post after posting

    no wonder this is “surprising”, reinforcing my initial response too…

    If it isn't illegal I believe it should be! Maybe they found another loophole like they duped bondholders listing pensions a mere footnote…a loophole closed almost immediately thereafter the slippery little weasels. Bond holders are not happy today are they, and so much for the whopping 10% interest they promised let alone RS enticing banks or $20 buys… all BS, they lie so much …to pack up and get out and take this waiver with you

    … reminds me of the mob having judges in their pocket, not that this is the case, just that's what it reminds me of =)

    like hiring a CEO defrauding from day one while embroiled in fraud fallout, after so many insider only CFOs before Marconni's Binning… to like this now … when the most obvious is usually the most truthful…

    no wonder I crassly belly ache so much some call passion…. what horsefeathers eh… hire the talent to sell the bonus driven restructuring, sounds like they will even canibilize themselves with Roth envy =)

    Surely deserving of terms that would make a hardened criminal cower. an chronic outrage, pathological Murphy's Law in full bloom! At least he has no options to trade for cash but dunno about not needing their new $300M in lawsuit insurance. =) Like I say, the punch lines never cease do they…

  • protosphere

    Will DeRoma suddenly come out of retirement too someday I wonder? =) What good is Drinkwater if he can't push the Koolaid to the court? =) Manley is a lawyer too.

    This guy suddenly came out of retirement coincidentally knowing E&Y and the guru yodda “advising organizations with respect to business and financial restructurings …and provided advice to governments, regulators, lenders and major public and private corporations .

  • protosphere

    “Dr. Manfred Bischoff has decided to step down from the Boards of Directors of Nortel Networks Corporation and Nortel Networks Limited.”

    “has decided” to “step down” than they fired him?

    How polite. I believe he didn't step down at all but was asked to leave.

    If they restructure, is Burstoff entiltled to any restructuring bonuses I wonder…. =)

    Besides, how could he have stepped down …he wasn't slandered =)

  • LoyalLoser

    Retired from the partnership in 2002- dodged the “Conflict of Interest” bullet there (technically).

    More interestingly….. Is currently a “Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors of AIR CANADA”??????

    Isn't Air Canada also on verge of Creditor Protection…. AGAIN! And he has been recruited to assist in the restructuring?

    Oh yeah! Another brilliant business decision. It's was a comedy of errors (bad decisions) that got us here and the fun just never ends.

    You'd think someone would stop the train and say, “Hey! It hasn't worked in 8 years. What are we doing wrong?” Instead of just continuing on hoping that same old knee jerk reactions will somehow hit the magic button and work now!

  • Got_Out

    Now there is an interesting (ironic) twist….Frank Dunn wins his lawsuit, but there is no money (or Nortel) left to get paid his award!

  • 4merEmployee22

    March 31, 2009

    AIR CANADA CEO RESIGNS

    Will Nortel CEO be next ???

  • broadbandbill

    Cramer on CNBC this morning talking about management compensation (singling out Kraft’s and ATT CEOs): “If you have any self-respect you give the money back because your performance is abysmal. I doesn’t’ matter what the contract says, it doesn’t matter what the compensation committee says; it matters what your own conscience says, assuming you have one.”

    Also, he states that the real problem in corporate America is the severe lack of backbone on the part of compensation committees that only follow what others do and are almost single-handedly responsible for the creation of class warfare between management and employees. Are you listening Mr. Z? …–bb

  • horace_grimswold

    Air Canada and its parent ACE Aviation is a shell game created to shuffle money between a bunch of ventures (Aeroplan, Air Canada, Jazz, etc.) in an obfuscated fashion:

    http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/551947

    Hasn't Nortel been doing exactly that in recent years? Are we truly surprised to see they brought on an EXPERT at this to the board? Note to creditors: hire a forensic accountant ASAP.

    The more things change, the more they stay the same.

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  • always_truthful

    The first thing he should do is to fire Pearce and MZ

  • always_truthful

    The first thing he should do is to fire Pearce and MZ

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