The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday overturned former accounting firm Arthur Anderson's conviction of obstruction of justice for destroying documents related to the Enron criminal inquiry.

In a unanimous decision, the court said the federal jury that convicted Anderson of one count of obstruction of justice was given improper instructions. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion.

Andersen, which folded its accounting business in the wake of the Enron scandal, has played a significant role in the handling of the Indian trust. In the 1990s, the firm created "reconciliation" reports on tribal trust fund accounts that the Bush administration is now using to claim that tribes are owed very little for mismanagement of their assets.

The reports are also being used to claim that Individual Indian Money (IIM) account holders are owed a mere "millions" for the handling of their funds. Anderson, however, never worked on the IIM trust and once opined that it would be impossible and costly to try and reconcile the funds.

Bert T. Edwards, a former Arthur Andersen partner, heads up the Office of Historical Trust Accounting at the Interior Department.

Get the Story:
Justices Overturn Andersen Conviction (The Washington Post 6/1)
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Justices Reject Auditor Verdict in Enron Scandal (The New York Times 6/1)
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Reversal of Andersen Conviction Not a Declaration of Innocence (The New York Times 6/1)

Decision in Arthur Anderson v. US:
Syllabus | Opinion [Rehnquist]

Relevant Links:
Arthur Andersen - http://www.andersen.com

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