Corporate governance and accountability subjects of new newsletters from Mealey and Strafford.

Top news stories invariably sow the seeds which attentive publishers nurture into flourishing newsletters--anything from the oil crisis in the '70s to oil spills in the '80s to the technology craze in the '90s to today's reconstruction of Iraq. Now, of course, it's corporate misbehavior that is attractive to newsletter publishers. To wit:

LexisNexis Mealey Publications and Conference Group this month launched the LexisNexis Corporate Governance Report, which will follow all aspects of corporate governance litigation, with "gavel-to-gavel coverage of billion-dollar suits against major corporations, actions involving smaller companies, and new complaints," in the words of LexisNexis Mealey marketing manager Lex Daniele.

The new title will provide detailed information on suits by shareholders and regulators against banks, corporations, corporate officials, and their legal and accounting professionals.

In the inaugural issue, for example, subscribers read about the proposed $1 billion settlement in the IPO allegations litigation, the Department of Labor's suit against Enron Corp., and details on a judge's ruling that shareholders of the Walt Disney Co. have sufficiently started a cause of action for breach of fiduciary duty against members of the company's board of directors.

The monthly Corporate Governance Report costs $880 per year. There's also an online version of the report, available through LexisNexis at www.lexis.com. It features e-mail delivery, internet access to the full text of the Report the day it is published, PDF files of full-text court documents and case cites, and instant e-mail delivery of litigation in specific practice areas.

Accompanying the launch of Corporate Governance Report is Mealey's Sept. 8-9 "Corporate Governance Symposium" in Boston, billed as "Sarbanes-Oxley is just the beginning.... "

Mealey publishes nearly four dozen litigation reports.

P.O. Box 62090, King of Prussia, PA 19406, 800-MEALEYS, www.lexisnexis.com

Corporate Accountability Alert

Strafford Publications Inc., a leading provider of news, trend analysis, and management information for the tax, legal, and security professions, recently launched Corporate Accountability Alert.

The twice-monthly is available for a limited time at the charter rate of $697--$150 off the regular price of $847.

Written for corporate counsel, private practice attorneys, and corporate officers and directors--"as well as other professional advisers in this fast-evolving, high-risk area"--the Alert covers the expanding legal requirements and increased risk facing corporate officers and directors.

It will report on all dimensions of corporate governance, fiduciary duty, financial reporting, independence, disclosure, directors and officers liability, insider trading, shareholder rights, ethics codes and enforcement, compliance, transparency, and oversight.

A team of attorney-editors will monitor the key lawmaking, rulemaking, and oversight bodies--the Congress, SEC, PCAOB, FASB, NASD, NYSE, Amex, and the courts nationwide--to provide quick alerts on key news, concise digests of the latest court decisions, analysis of emerging trends, and alerts on evolving requirements and interpretations.

In addition, every issue features Strafford's Docket*Trac, a complete and up-to-date source on new corporate accountability filings against directors and officers. At a glance, it shows who's being sued, who's representing whom, and the nature and status of each claim.

590 Dutch Valley Rd., NE, Atlanta, GA 30324, 404-881-1141, www.straffordpub.com