The Associated Press reports that Yahoo shelled out $36 million in the first half of '08 to outside advisers to help the company sort through the Micro-hoo mess and the ensuing proxy fight with Carl
Icahn. Yahoo retained Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Moelis & Co., and the law firm Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom following Microsoft's $45 billion offer on Feb. 1. The $36 million price tag
amounts to about 5% of Yahoo's profit in the first half of the year, according to the AP. It also doesn't account for what the company spent in July, when Icahn and Microsoft joined forces to pitch
another sales scheme, which Yahoo also rejected.
According to the AP report, which cited an SEC filing made by the company, Yahoo also received several shareholder lawsuits claiming that
company executives and board members breached their fiduciary duties during the negotiations. The suits claim that the search deal with Google and the updated severance plan were all part of a massive
conspiracy to cool Microsoft's interest and further depress the company's value.
Read the whole story at Associated Press »
