Legislative, Regulatory & Legal

Minneapolis -- Best Buy Co. announced that founder Richard Schulze would step down as chairman after an independent board investigation found that he had failed to report allegations of personal misconduct by former CEO Brian Dunn to the board's audit committee.

Schulze will serve out the remainder of his term as director. Best Buy said its board has elected director Hatim Tyabji to succeed Schulze as chairman, effective at the conclusion of the annual meeting on June 21.

Minneapolis -- According to a Wednesday filing by Best Buy, former CEO Brian Dunn may receive either $3.1 million or zero in termination payments following his highly publicized resignation.

The payout is dependent on whether or not Dunn is determined to have left voluntarily on April 9.

In the filing, Best Buy said it is reviewing Dunn’s compensation pending its investigation into his personal conduct.

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) this week filed a lawsuit against current and former Walmart executives stemming from the April 22 New York Times article, which chronicled the company’s alleged use of bribes to accelerate expansion in Mexico and efforts by top executives to quash an investigation when the situation was called to their attention.

New York -- The California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTSR), the second largest U.S. public pension fund, has filed a lawsuit against current and former Wal-Mart Stores’ executives and board members over mishandling of allegations that officials knew about a bribery campaign in Mexico and covered it up. The fund holds more than 5.3 million shares of Wal-Mart.

NEW YORK — It’s looking like Walmart’s upcoming annual meeting is going to be a bittersweet affair as the company observes its 50th anniversary against the backdrop of an unfolding Mexican bribery scandal and an appeal from a major shareholder this week urging a no vote on five board members.

New York -- New York City Pension Funds is urging shareholders to vote against the re-election of Wal-Mart Stores CEO Mike Duke and four other board members out of concerns about the chain’s bribery investigation in Mexico, the Associated Press reported.

The pension group owns 5.6 million shares of Wal-Mart, which has more than 3.4 billion shares outstanding.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation is responding to a report from the Federal Reserve, which revealed that debit card swipe fees collected by the nation's largest banks have significantly dropped since reform regulations took effect last fall.

Retailers are in business to sell products customers want, except when they’re not, which appears to be the case with the retailer’s decision to stop selling Amazon.com’s hugely popular Kindle devices.

Target has done quite well for itself in California, but that doesn’t mean it’s been easy. Ironically, the state with the most extensive network of Target stores also happens to be the one identified as the worst state in which to do business, according to a recent survey.

Bentonville, Ark. -- The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has ordered Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to pay more than $4.8 million in back wages and damages to some 4,500 employees nationwide.

The assessment follows a departmental investigation of the retailer that uncovered violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act's overtime provisions.

Wal-Mart has been assessed another $463,815 in civil money penalties.