Communicating in Aftermath of Terror.

• Position: Brief Article

In the wake of September's terror-List attacks, affected companies need to be especially careful about how they communicate corporate news, say legal, market and investor relations experts. That was especially true in the days following the tragedy, but will linger as the economic impact of the crisis ripples through the economy.

Worst off, of course, are the financial services companies operating in the World Trade Center and the surrounding area. Some smaller, private firms have been decimated, and a number of larger public companies lost many employees or had operations seriously curtailed when fires forced evacuation of neighboring buildings.

"If your company has been or may be directly affected by the tragedies, we strongly recommend that senior management disclose how the company will be affected," said Richard Tilghman, partner and co-chair of the corporate and securities practice of law firm Piper Marbury Rudnik & Wolfe, when speaking at an investor relations conference a few clays after the tragedy. "Such disclosures need to be accurate and sensible assessments of the likely effect of the events on your individual business, and the duty to disclose under Regulation FD [Fair Disclosure] is not mitigated by the...