Bowne DecisionQuest Polls Find Attitudes toward Corporate America Improving After Enron, MCI WorldCom Scandals; Corporate Executives Still Have Long Way to Go.

Business Editors/Legal Writers

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 19, 2003

Two new studies by Los Angeles-based Bowne DecisionQuest, the nation's leading trial consulting firm, finds that 58 percent of jury-eligible Americans polled believe most corporations are doing a good job of cleaning up their business and accounting practices following the Enron and MCI WorldCom scandals. However, the surveys find that corporate executives face credibility problems in the courtroom.

The surveys revealed that 57 percent of Americans believe the government is doing a good job making sure that similar corporate scandals do not recur. These latest findings demonstrate progress in the overall fight for restoring credibility to Corporate America as opposed to previous findings. For instance, last year's DecisionQuest study revealed that 76 percent of jury eligible Americans were angry with corporations for various reasons and 63 percent developed a lesser opinion of corporations during 2002.

Nevertheless, when asked about the degree of trust and confidence respondents have in corporate accounting reforms, only 33 percent expressed confidence or more confidence now in the veracity of accounting statements.

The public image of corporate executives fared no better. A whopping 64 percent of respondents said they believed that the large compensation packages given to top-level executives encouraged corruption. And only 39 percent thought the huge pay packages were justified. Support for big pay was strongest (50 percent) among Black, Hispanic, Asian and other minority groups, and among younger respondents - 48 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds compared to 35 percent support for those 35 and older.

Corporate auditors also faced scrutiny as 58 percent of Americans believe that auditors tend to do what their corporate clients tell them to do, even if it means being dishonest.

"The assignment of blame in America has seemed to shift from corporations and toward the executives who lead them. More than 60 percent of Americans believe that businesses still have a long way to go to make sure that their senior management behaves honestly," said Dr. Philip Anthony, CEO of DecisionQuest.

To explore these issues, a Bowne DecisionQuest research team, led by DecisionQuest's Galina Davidoff, Ph.D. and Nancy Neufer, M.S., conducted two national surveys. The first was a phone survey of 1,101 jury-eligible participants from around the country and Puerto Rico, conducted in September. The second was a survey of 1,011 in-person interviews in 18 states conducted as part of DecisionQuest's ongoing research from June through September. Results of both surveys were compared to DecisionQuest/Minority Corporate Counsel Association 2002 survey.

The surveys also showed that corporate executives were not in great demand in the courtroom. When prospective jurors were asked whom they would like most to testify in a lawsuit in which a major corporation was accused of wrong-doing, only 10 percent wanted to hear from the president or CEO. Fifty-nine percent favored the company employee most directly involved in the situation. However, respondents from the South, or with less education and lower income, were more inclined to want to hear from the president or someone high in the company, while those with high school diplomas or higher education favored the person most closely related to the charges.

For a complete copy of the Bowne DecisionQuest surveys, contact Nicole Quigley at 202-973-1328 or [e-mail].

Los Angeles-based Bowne DecisionQuest is the nation's leading trial consulting firm and specializes in jury research, demonstrative exhibits, jury selection, courtroom technology, litigation software, and strategic communications. DecisionQuest is a strategic communications firm which applies the rigors of social science research and the persuasive powers of multimedia graphic design to the problems faced by law firms, corporations and public agencies. The company has more than 160 employees and 20 offices nationwide, including those in Dallas, Chicago, New York, and Washington, DC. DecisionQuest can be accessed via the Internet at http://www.decisionquest.com.