Media Roundup: More Rebuttal

The media reports, webbed overnight and today, on the Conrad Black trial have focused on the testimony of securities lawyer Christopher Paci, though not exclusively:

1. CBC News has webbed a recap of the week's trial events, by Susan Berger.

2. Ameet Sachdev of the Chicago Tribune has written a report on the testimony of Csr. Paci, who testified yesterday that James Thompson had informed him that the related-party transactions had been approved by the audit committee. It also has this highlight from the cross-examination: "'There were gaps in the sense that transactions were approved by the board but not the audit committee, even though they had related-party elements to them,' Paci said. He later testified, 'Not all of the approvals that should have been obtained were in the record.'" Those gaps are what got him meeting with the audit committee so as to complete the due diligence for a planned financing.

3. An abridged report by Mary Vallis, webbed by the Montreal Gazette, starts off by noting that the defense should rest early next week, and that Judge St. Eve "expects" closing arguments to begin on June 18. It then recaps the testimony of Csr. Paci.

4. The testimony of another of yesterday's witnesses, Margaret Bajzek, is focused upon by Rick Westhead of the Toronto Star. He asks the question, before recounting Ms. Bajzek's vouching for Mark Kipnis' character, "Will anyone vouch for Conrad Black?" (Other than Joan Maida, presumably...but she wasn't called as a character witness.)

5.Mary Wisniewski's report, webbed by the Chicago Sun-Times, also recaps Csr. Paci's testimony, and mentions that the counsellor for Mark Kipnis who questioned him under direct examination was Michael Swartz. It ends by noting that Mr. Thompson had testified earlier that he couldn't recall the details of his meeting with Csr. Paci.

6. Yesterday's Bloomberg report, witten by Andrew Harris and Joe Schneider, has made the Washington Post. Like Mr. Westhead's report, it centres on the testimony of Ms. Bajzek. It also notes, though, that the "[d]efense attorneys maintain that the noncompete agreements were legally enforceable and a critical component of each asset sale." (The prosecution went with this point in the cross-examination of Kenneth Whyte last Monday, by Julie Ruder)

7. The Observer has webbed a one-paragraph trial review, "Donald Trump, you're fired!", in its "The week" feature.

8. The Independent has a one-paragraph summary of last week's part of the trial as the last item in its "The City Diary." Mentioned are Donald Trump not showing up and the rejection of the motion to recall David Radler to the stand.