September 12, 2011
Accenture Settles Lawsuit with U.S. Department of Justice
NEW YORK; Sept. 12, 2011 — Accenture (NYSE: ACN) today announced that it has agreed with the U.S. Department of Justice to settle a lawsuit originally filed in 2006 (United States ex rel. Norman Rille and Neal Roberts v. Accenture LLP) for $63.68 million. The lawsuit claimed that, in work for the U.S. federal government, Accenture received payments, resale revenue or other benefits through alliance agreements with technology vendors that were not sufficiently disclosed and that were not allowed on federal contracts.
Accenture and the U.S. Department of Justice have agreed to settle the suit to avoid additional time, inconvenience and expense that would come with protracted litigation.
The agreement is not an admission of liability by Accenture. Accenture continues to vigorously deny that there was any wrongdoing. The U.S. federal government was aware of alliance relationships in the IT industry and how they would benefit customers, vendors and the IT industry. The details of how alliances worked in the IT industry were widely reported in the industry press.
Accenture’s alliance agreements with IT vendors were disclosed in proposals made to our US government clients. Accenture remains confident that our agreements and dealings with our alliance partners and vendors were appropriate and lawful.
This matter was first mentioned in Accenture’s Q3FY07 10-Q. We have included the cost of this settlement in our business outlook and financial guidance. The settlement will not materially impact our results of operations or financial position.
This settlement will not restrict Accenture’s current or future business with the U.S. federal government in any way. Accenture remains committed to our federal clients, including serving the Department of Justice.
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Contact:
Jim McAvoy
Accenture
(703) 947-3449