Business notebook

Damages grow: A jury in Miami ordered accounting firm BDO Seidman to pay $351 million in punitive damages in a negligence case, bringing total liability to $521 million. The jury found BDO negligent for failing to find massive fraud in its audits of a financial services company backed by a Portuguese bank. The amount will be added to the same jury's award of $170 million in compensation to the bank, Banco Espirito Santo. BDO Seidman has warned a $170 million loss could trigger massive layoffs. It plans to appeal.

Pink slips: Restoration Hardware Inc. will lay off 100 workers due to "challenging market conditions" amid a decline in the housing sector. The firings, at corporate headquarters in Corte Madera, Calif., will save about $3.5 million after severance and other costs for the remainder of 2007, and about $9 million annually.

Speed's the issue: Maine's Public Utilities Commission endorsed a plan to make high-speed Internet access available to almost 35,000 Mainers. The agreement identifies specific locations where DSL will become available, increasing to 70 percent the proportion of Verizon Maine landline customers who will have high-speed Internet access.

Relief at the pumps: Gasoline prices in Massachusetts are down 9 cents since last week and 17 cents in the past month. A weekly survey by AAA of New England found an average price of $2.75 per gallon for self-service regular. A month ago, the price was $2.92. Gas prices have dropped 29 cents since May 28. AAA says the average price is a penny a gallon below the nationwide average of $2.76.

News flash: Tribune Co. said its $8.2 billion sale to a group led by billionaire Sam Zell is still on, disputing an analyst's report. Shares of Tribune fell the most in almost five years after Craig Huber of Lehman Brothers Holdings cut his earnings estimates for the second-largest US newspaper publisher and questioned whether the $34-a-share leveraged buyout will happen, giving it a 50-50 chance. The shares recovered after the company's comments.

Lennon on iTunes: Apple Inc. will offer the entire solo catalog of John Lennon (right) on iTunes, its second such Beatles deal. Beatles tunes have been among the most difficult songs to find online. The Lennon deal, one with Paul McCartney, and a settlement to a trademark dispute between Apple and the Beatles' Apple Corps Ltd. are seen clearing the way for the Fab Four catalog to be distributed online.

Rumor denied: Thornburg Mortgage Inc. said it won't file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, even after liquidity problems caused the mortgage lender to delay its dividend and sparked a 47 percent plunge in its share price. Chief operating officer Larry Goldstone told CNBC there's "no intention" of seeking protection from creditors.

Adiós: Lear Corp. chairman and CEO Bob Rossiter has assumed the additional role of president as part of the auto parts supplier's ongoing restructuring. He replaces Doug DelGrosso, who reached a deal with Lear to leave.

Hello again: Sean Menke returned to Frontier Airlines Holdings Inc., as CEO. Menke, chief operating officer at Frontier until 2003, replaces Jeff Potter, who will become CEO of Denver-based Exclusive Resorts.

(Globe wire services)