Motorola, ex-CFO spar over dismissal

Motorola and former CFO Paul Liska are sparring over Liska's termination, which Motorola said in a recent filing was "for cause," but which Liska contends was a wrongful termination.

Liska filed a wrongful termination lawsuit Feb. 20 in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Ill., according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. On Wednesday, Motorola revealed in a proxy statement filing to the Securities and Exchange Comission that it had dismissed Liska for cause, though the company did not specifically define what Liska had done. Liska said he first found out about the development from a news report.

When Motorola reported its fourth quarter earnings on Feb. 3, it said Edward Fitzpatrick, a senior vice president and corporate controller, had been named to replace Liska. Liska contends that he was fired on Jan. 29 after a board meeting. He told the Journal in a statement that he was caught off-guard by Motorola's filing. Motorola said that it had complied with all financial-reporting requirements.

"For approximately the next three weeks, I and my attorney had been told I was terminated without cause," according to the statement. "Neither I nor my attorney have been contacted about this 180-degree change in Motorola's representation concerning my dismissal."    

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