Lawsuit Against Karcher Settled

The settlement of an insider trading lawsuit against Alvin DeShano, accounting director of Carl Karcher Enterprises, has been approved and made final by a federal judge in Los Angeles.

The consent decree, signed last week by U.S. District Judge Edward Rafeedie, requires DeShano to repay $12,386 plus a one-time penalty of the same amount. The judgment also prohibits DeShano from future violations of the antitrust provisions of antitrust laws.

Under terms of the agreement, DeShano did not admit or deny the charge.

For DeShano, the settlement ends a lawsuit filed 16 months ago by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC accused DeShano, Carl N. Karcher, founder of the hamburger chain, and 14 Karcher relatives of violating insider trading laws in 1984.

Carl Karcher and six relatives have also reached an agreement to settle the charges, but not all of them have signed the final documents. Lawyers in the case said they expect agreement to be finalized at any time.