TJX to pay MasterCard as much as $24m over breach

Framingham-based TJX Cos. said it struck a settlement with MasterCard Inc. in which the retailer will pay up to $24 million to banks and other institutions to cover fraud losses stemming from a massive data breach TJX disclosed last year. TJX struck a similar deal with Visa Inc. in which it agreed to pay up to $40.9 million. TJX said both deals are reflected in the more than $200 million it has either spent or set aside to pay for intrusion-related costs and legal fees following the breach that affected as many as 100 million card numbers. In exchange, banks would agree not to sue TJX or institutions that processed charges at its stores. (Ross Kerber)

Perini Corp., a building and civil construction company based in Framingham, said it will buy privately held Tutor-Saliba Corp. in an all-stock deal worth about $862 million. Under the terms of the deal, Tutor-Saliba investors will receive shares equal to about 45 percent of Perini's common stock in exchange for their Tutor-Saliba shares. When the deal is completed, Perini said its board would be expanded to 10 directors. Perini chief executive and chairman Ronald N. Tutor, who also is the principal shareholder of Tutor-Saliba, will serve as chairman and CEO of the combined companies, the company said. The deal still requires approval from Perini shareholders. (AP)

Intel Corp. unveiled features for its line of low-cost laptops for schools, adding bigger screens and more data storage capacity as the chip maker ratchets up its rivalry with the Cambridge-based One Laptop per Child organization, which sells a competing machine. Intel's Classmate PCs - slated to go on sale this month for $300 to $500 - reflect the company's growing efforts to sell computers equipped with its own chips to schools in developing countries, a battleground for technology companies because of the millions of people there just coming online. (AP)

A federal judge in Indianapolis dismissed a shareholder lawsuit against former Guidant Corp. directors and officers over the heart-device maker's purchase by Boston Scientific Corp. Natick-based Boston Scientific, paid $27.5 billion for Guidant in April 2006 following a bidding war with Johnson & Johnson and Guidant's disclosure that its defibrillators had caused deaths. Guidant shareholders sued the company's directors and officers before completion of the sale, claiming breach of fiduciary duties and abuse of control. (Bloomberg)

Clear Channel Communications Inc. and its buyers, Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP, won the right to keep a lawsuit over the acquisition in Texas state court, a federal judge ruled. Clear Channel joined the Boston-based private-equity firms in a lawsuit filed March 26 in state court in San Antonio, where the company is based. They alleged banks that agreed to finance the deal interfered with the takeover by refusing to provide $22.1 billion of loans on the original terms. The lenders, Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG, Credit Suisse Group, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, and Wachovia Corp., had asked that the state case be moved to federal court. (Bloomberg)

Mel Weiss, cofounder of securities law firm Milberg Weiss, pleaded guilty to paying clients illegal kickbacks in exchange for them filing shareholder lawsuits that brought lawyers $251 million in fees. Weiss, 72, admitted to one racketeering conspiracy charge at a hearing in Los Angeles federal court. "I deeply regret my conduct and apologize to all those who have been affected," Weiss said in a statement. US District Judge John F. Walter scheduled sentencing for June 2. The judge said he hasn't decided whether he will accept the terms of the plea deal, which calls for an 18-to-33-month prison term. Weiss can withdraw his guilty plea if the judge wants to impose a longer sentence. (Bloomberg)

Under pressure from regulators, drug maker GlaxoSmithKline has added warnings of reported psychiatric problems to the label for its flu drug Relenza. The new language lists seizures, hallucinations, and delirium as among the problems seen in patients taking the drug. The Food and Drug Administration highlighted the changes on its website. Most problems occurred in children in Japan, the largest market for flu medications, because doctors there prescribe drugs like Relenza as a standard treatment for flu symptoms. (AP)