I came upon this site and saw this (below) which supports my hunch that perhaps the spin we hear is probably not all due to gov. and companies eager to calm the general public panic, but also for insurance purposes. (the 10Q's come to mind, but also any info they might give to news media.)

This site is a gem for information on legal y2k issues

Excerpts: [PREPARING FOR LITIGATION]

Organizations trying to defend themselves against Year 2000 litigation must be able to demonstrate that they took reasonable and prudent steps to remediate century-date problems. Efforts should be documented in a record of diligence, a written audit trail that addresses Year 2000 awareness, assessment, and resolution that answers such questions as: [36]http://www.sentrytech.com/sm1075fb.html (visited 3/12/98)).

* How did senior management become aware of the problem?

* What steps did management take to assess the problem's level of impact on the organization?

* What steps were taken to know where the organization is in the overall picture of compliance and exposure?

* What priorities were established?

* Which vendors and solutions were chosen?

* What steps were taken to meet the priorities? The following are additional recommended litigation-related measures a company should take with regard to Year 2000 risks:

* Provide periodic management briefings on Year 2000 risks and liability exposure;

* Help develop procedures for documenting Year 2000 compliance efforts;

* Preserve privileged communications;

* Avoid copyright infringement and warranty invalidation under IT licensing agreements in the course of renovating non-compliant code;

* Evaluate and make required disclosures of Year 2000-related expenditures and contingencies; and

* Notify responsible vendors and insurers of potential claims.

The most effective way to prepare for any potential litigation is to plan ahead and be prepared. Litigation surrounding the Year 2000 problem is no different. In fact, proper planning and documentation could be a company's best defense if litigation ensues. The following is an outline of an overall Year 2000 strategy that will help prepare for (and hopefully eliminate) future lawsuits:

[snip]

A. Potential discovery and disclosure issues.

1. Define control group.

2. Review risks associated with existing Year 2000 documentation and information that may not be protected by legal privileges.

3. Develop strategy that effectively protects privileged information, discussions and documents.

[snip] Index page

Main Page

-- Chris (catsy@pond.com), February 20, 1999

Answers

Chris,

I suspect they'll wait until the Senate passes the new Y2K Litigation legislation S 96 so their backsides are less exposed too.

Also, I've known "quite" a few CEO's and theres an unwritten set of rules ...

Objective Number One: Protect the corporate assets.

Objective Number Two: Only if there is a strong benefit OR your competition would look "really bad" then talk to the press, and back up the assertions with either verifiable facts or fancy logic.

Objective Number Three: If you choose objective number two, be sure it increases number one.

Corollary Rules: Delegate your problems, always phone your CEO buds for the "straight" scoop on the united front and when in doubt, either sell, spin-off or merge.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), February 21, 1999.