end of this year, you’re going to be a nervous wreck.”
“Thanks for the good news but what can I do about it?”
“We’ve got some thinking to do. First help me understand what happened to Victor? We haven’t had much time to talk about it, healthy one day and dead the next. What the hell is that all about?”
She told him the entire story of her husband’s clinical course, and Spehn said, “There’s your answer.”
“What answer?”
“How do you know the doctor didn’t botch things up? He wasn’t bleeding until after the doctor worked on him.”
“I doubt he botched it. He has a good reputation.”
“What’s that got to do with it? You know what they say, doctors can bury their mistakes.”
“We don’t know that a mistake was made.”
“We don’t know that it wasn’t,” Spehn said decisively.
“So, what are you driving at, Richard?”
“Take the case to a jury and you’ve got a chance at hitting the jackpot. Especially in Cook County.”
Marilyn’s eyes opened widely. She put her right hand to her cheek. “You’re talking…a malpractice suit?”
“Absolutely.”
Marilyn said, “First, this is not Chicago and second, you want me to sue a famous doctor?”
“No, I want you to sue a doctor. His fame has nothing to do with it. In fact that could work to your advantage. And don’t forget to add the hospital, and any other doctor that was on the case.”
Marilyn sat transfixed. She stared into space. Her mind was racing. “I couldn’t. I couldn’t.”
“So go back to work. I don’t think you can support your kids for another eight years until Susan finishes college. Do you?”
“I suppose not,” Marilyn faltered, “but there’s another thing.”
“What’s that?”
“The doctor is my next door neighbor.”
Spehn shook his head vigorously. “Geez…so what. It’s not your fault the doctor involved in the death of your husband lives next door. I don’t care if he’s boarding in your house.”
“How do I sue a man who lives next door to me?”
“It happens every day. Anyhow, who’s going to know except you and the doctor?”
“Those things have a way of getting around.”
“Well, I’ve said my piece. If you want to wait until you find out whether the company will move up the date of vesting, that’s your call. Don’t count on it. But if they don’t, how do your kids go to college? How do you pay your bills in a year? You’ve got a lot to think about. If you decide I’m right, call Vincent Barbutti. My contacts in The Loop tell me he’s the best personal injury lawyer in the city. Keep me posted. I have to go now. Remember I’m here if you need me.” He gave his sister a quick hug and left for his office on North Clark Street in Chicago.
One week passed. Marilyn returned home from the grocery store and found a message on the answering machine. “Mrs. Wallberg this is Walter Orleans. Please make an appointment to see me at your earliest convenience.”
The next day she was in Orleans’ office where the topic, as she suspected, was her husband’s stock options. The serious expression on Orlean’s face told her what was to come. He said, “I want you to know that I was granted a special meeting of the Board of Directors of TDI. The purpose was to introduce your request for the restoration of your husband’s stock options. The Board pointed out that since the options were issued, their tax treatment had been changed and they would now have to be listed as an expense on the company’s profit and loss statement. Your husband had an option on one million shares of stock at a price of $2.10 per share so the company would have an expense of $2.1 million dollars on the next quarterly statement if your request were granted and the effect would be to reduce the overall company profits by that amount. In light of the changed tax situation, and consistent with the stipulations in effect at the time the options were issued, the board has declared that the options expired upon the death of your husband.”
Confused, Marilyn said, “What does that mean?”
“It means that for all practical purposes the options never existed.”
Incredulous, Marilyn said, “You mean that even after another two years, I’m not to receive any money from the options?”
“I’m afraid that’s correct.”
Marilyn was exasperated. “But didn’t the company know about the tax laws when the options were issued.”
Orleans explained patiently, “The tax laws have changed since then and many companies are having to restate their earnings downward and some are doing away with stock options entirely.”
“So where does that leave me?” Marilyn asked in a challenging voice.
“The Board was unanimous in the decision to deny your request as not being in the best interest of the stockholders.”
Marilyn said, “I’m not going to sit here and tell you that I understand what you are talking about. It wouldn’t matter, of course. I just hoped that the Board would have shown some gratitude to the widow of the man who brought this company back from the brink of disaster. But business is business as they say and damn the victims.”
“Mrs. Wallberg, I got to know your husband quite well in the three years he was with the firm, and I knew his style and learned much about finance from him. He understood money better than anyone I’ve ever come across. I have to tell you this, I’m sure that your husband would concur with this decision if he were on the Board voting on another key officer’s similar request. The company is on its feet again and succeeding beyond anyone’s expectation. We have to keep that progress going and that means no actions can be taken that will have an adverse effect on the bottom line.”
In a voice filled with bitterness and despair, Marilyn said, “My brother told me what would likely happen. There’s no sense me saying anything else. Thanks for giving me the courtesy of telling me to my face.”
She called her brother immediately. “It’s worse than we thought, Richard. The company refused to restore the options and I’m not to receive one dime.”
Spehn was outraged. “They’re really something aren’t they? The company pays you off with three months severance and that’s it. Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. In this world, everyone has to look out for himself. I suppose we could sue TDI for the value of the options but my guess is it would be a waste of time. I’m sure when Orleans prepared the option agreement there were lots of loopholes included that would allow the company to void the agreement if they chose to do so. So let’s forget about that. In any event, I was thinking about your finances. If you’re pretty frugal, and invest wisely perhaps you can stretch out the money for more
