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Dole Food CEO, lawyer ordered to pay nearly $150 million for fraud

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Dole Food CEO, lawyer ordered to pay nearly $150 million for fraud

The Chancery Court of Delaware has ordered Dole Food Co. Inc. CEO David Murdock and General Counsel C. Michael Carter to pay more than $148 million dollars to investors for fraud, the court said in a decision Thursday.

In a 106-page decision by Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster, the court said “Murdock, his entity DFC Holdings, L.L.C., and Carter are liable for breaches of their duty of loyalty in the amount of $148,190,590.18.”

The case stems from the November 2013 acquisition by Mr. Murdock of Dole for $13.50 a share, according to court documents. Prior to the deal, Mr. Murdock owned approximately 40% of the company, according to court documents.

The decision states that Messrs. Murdock and Carter sought to interfere with the workings of a special committee made up of “disinterested and independent directors” whose recommendation was necessary to seal the deal.

“He (Murdock) and his right-hand man, defendant C. Michael Carter, sought to undermine the Committee from the start, and they continued their efforts throughout the process,” the court wrote in its decision.

Dole did not immediately respond to request for comment.

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