Cendant OKs Stock Fraud Settlement

Cendant Corp. agreed to a $54-million settlement of legal claims against 30 current and former officials accused of complicity in an accounting scandal that caused company stock to plummet $14 billion in one day.

Under the settlement, which needs the final approval of U.S. District Judge William Walls in Newark, N.J., Cendant would get the money to resolve lawsuits filed over accounting irregularities it disclosed in April 1998. The officers and directors named as defendants, including Chief Executive Henry Silverman, admitted no liability.

Cendant has paid $3.2 billion to resolve separate litigation in the largest securities settlement in U.S. history.