Attorneys for Todd Lane, former chief financial officer of WesCorp, have filed for dismissal of the charges the NCUA has brought against him in its amended lawsuit.
A hearing is set for Dec. 20 at 8:30 am in the U.S. District Court Central District of California, Western Division. Judge George H. Wu will preside.
According to the filing by attorneys from Chapin Fitzgerald Sullivan LLP on behalf of Lane, the NCUA in its filings made no specific allegations against the former WesCorp CFO explaining how Lane was in breach of fiduciary duty or how it led to WesCorp's billion-dollar losses. "There is not a single allegation that Mr. Lane had the responsibility for concentration limits, that he played a role in setting them, or even that he had the authority to weigh in on them," the memorandum in support of the motion to dismiss stated. It added that the other three alleged breaches involve strategic business decisions for which officers cannot be liable nor did the NCUA outline Lane's role or responsibility in them.
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The filing also said the plaintiff did not make any specific claims that Lane misled the board at all. In fact, it states that in one place the NCUA says the yearly budget contained little information about the changes in WesCorp's investment portfolio, while another piece of the complaint said the board and officer made informed and reasonable decisions, which "are shielded from liability that is based on nothing more than hindsight bias."
The NCUA filed its amended complaint on Aug. 31, accusing then WesCorp President/CEO Robert Siravo and Vice President of Strategic Planning and Organizational Development Tom Swedberg of fraud when they increased their Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan payouts. The NCUA also accused Siravo of authorizing $1.4 million worth of early SERP from 2006 to 2008 payouts for Lane, who left WesCorp in 2008 short of his SERP-specified 2015 retirement date. "Lane knew or should have known, as Chief Financial Officer, that the transaction was unauthorized and improper," the NCUA stated.
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