SOX ruled constitutional in first test of law.

• Position: National

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) was ruled constitutional in the first court test of the federal law.

The ruling resulted from a motion filed in the trial of former Health South CEO Richard Scrushy, who argued the legislation is unconstitutionally vague. A U.S. District Court disagreed, stating that it is up to the jury in the case to decide if he willfully deceived investors by signing-off on inaccurate financial statements.

Scrushy is accused of overstating HealthSouth earnings by nearly $2.7 billion, and is the...