49ers claim RB Israel Abanikanda off waivers from Jets- Raising the mid-points of billings, revenue, margins, earnings per share, and free cash flow guidance ranges. - Janesh Moorjani appointed as chief financial officer. SAN FRANCISCO , Nov. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) today reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2025. All growth rates are compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2024, unless otherwise noted. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results is provided in the accompanying tables. For definitions, please view the Glossary of Terms later in this document. Third Quarter Fiscal 2025 Financial Highlights "Autodesk is leading the industry in modernizing its go-to-market motion. These initiatives enable us to build larger and more durable direct relationships with our customers and to serve them more efficiently. We have already seen significant benefits from these optimization initiatives and there's more to come in the next phase," said Andrew Anagnost , Autodesk president and CEO. "We will continue to deploy capital to offset and buy forward dilution, a practice which has reduced our share count over the last three years, and have significantly extended the duration of our repurchase program by increasing our stock repurchase authorization. Our goal is to deliver sustainable shareholder value over many years." "We generated broad-based underlying growth across products and regions. Overall, macroeconomic, policy, and geopolitical challenges, and the underlying momentum of the business, were consistent with the last few quarters with continued strong renewal rates and headwinds to new business growth," said Betsy Rafael , Autodesk interim CFO. "Given Autodesk's sustained momentum in the third quarter, and smooth launch of the new transaction model in Western Europe , we are raising the midpoints of our billings, revenue, margins, earnings per share, and free cash flow guidance ranges." Additional Financial Details Third Quarter Fiscal 2025 Business Highlights Net Revenue by Geographic Area Three Months Ended October 31, 2024 Three Months Ended October 31, 2023 Change compared to prior fiscal year Constant currency change compared to prior fiscal year (In millions, except percentages) $ % % Net Revenue: Americas U.S. $ 579 $ 520 $ 59 11 % * Other Americas 126 120 6 5 % * Total Americas 705 640 65 10 % 11 % EMEA 580 516 64 12 % 13 % APAC 285 258 27 10 % 14 % Total Net Revenue $ 1,570 $ 1,414 $ 156 11 % 12 % ____________________ * Constant currency data not provided at this level. Net Revenue by Product Family Our product offerings are focused in four primary product families: Architecture, Engineering and Construction ("AEC"), AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, Manufacturing ("MFG"), and Media and Entertainment ("M&E"). Three Months Ended October 31, 2024 Three Months Ended October 31, 2023 Change compared to prior fiscal year (In millions, except percentages) $ % AEC $ 751 $ 675 $ 76 11 % AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT 398 372 26 7 % MFG 307 269 38 14 % M&E 83 73 10 14 % Other 31 25 6 24 % Total Net Revenue $ 1,570 $ 1,414 $ 156 11 % Business Outlook The following are forward-looking statements based on current expectations and assumptions, and involve risks and uncertainties, some of which are set forth below under "Safe Harbor Statement." Autodesk's business outlook for the fourth quarter and full-year fiscal 2025 considers the current economic environment and foreign exchange currency rate environment. A reconciliation between the fiscal 2025 GAAP and non-GAAP estimates is provided below or in the tables following this press release. Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2025 Q4 FY25 Guidance Metrics Q4 FY25 (ending January 31, 2025) Revenue (in millions) $1,623 - $1,638 EPS GAAP $1.21 - $1.27 EPS non-GAAP (1) $2.10 - $2.16 ____________________ (1) Non-GAAP earnings per diluted share excludes $0.85 related to stock-based compensation expense, $0.17 for the amortization of both purchased intangibles and developed technologies, and $0.05 for acquisition-related costs, partially offset by ($0.18) related to GAAP-only tax charges. Full Year Fiscal 2025 FY25 Guidance Metrics FY25 (ending January 31, 2025) Billings (in millions) $5,900 - $5,980 Up 14% - 15% Revenue (in millions) (1) $6,115 - $6,130 Up approx. 11% GAAP operating margin 21.5% - 22% Non-GAAP operating margin (2) 35.5% - 36% EPS GAAP $4.95 - $5.01 EPS non-GAAP (3) $8.29 - $8.35 Free cash flow (in millions) (4) $1,470 - $1,500 ____________________ (1) Excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange rates and hedge gains/losses, revenue guidance range would be approximately 1 percentage point higher. (2) Non-GAAP operating margin excludes approximately 11% related to stock-based compensation expense, approximately 2% for the amortization of both purchased intangibles and developed technologies, and approximately 1% related to acquisition-related costs. (3) Non-GAAP earnings per diluted share excludes $3.15 related to stock-based compensation expense, $0.61 for the amortization of both purchased intangibles and developed technologies, $0.23 related to acquisition-related costs, and $0.04 related to losses on strategic investments, partially offset by ($0.69) related to GAAP-only tax charges. (4) Free cash flow is cash flow from operating activities less approximately $30 million of capital expenditures. The fourth quarter and full-year fiscal 2025 outlook assume a projected annual effective tax rate of 20 percent and 19 percent for GAAP and non-GAAP results, respectively. Shifts in geographic profitability continue to impact the annual effective tax rate due to significant differences in tax rates in various jurisdictions. Therefore, assumptions for the annual effective tax rate are evaluated regularly and may change based on the projected geographic mix of earnings. Earnings Conference Call and Webcast Autodesk will host its third quarter conference call today at 5 p.m. ET . The live broadcast can be accessed at autodesk.com/investor . A transcript of the opening commentary will also be available following the conference call. A replay of the broadcast will be available at 7 p.m. ET at autodesk.com/investor . This replay will be maintained on Autodesk's website for at least 12 months. Investor Presentation Details An investor presentation, Excel financials and other supplemental materials providing additional information can be found at autodesk.com/investor . Key Performance Metrics To help better understand our financial performance, we use several key performance metrics including billings, recurring revenue and net revenue retention rate. These metrics are key performance metrics and should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue. These metrics are not intended to be combined with those items. We use these metrics to monitor the strength of our recurring business. We believe these metrics are useful to investors because they can help in monitoring the long-term health of our business. Our determination and presentation of these metrics may differ from that of other companies. The presentation of these metrics is meant to be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for or in isolation from, our financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Glossary of Terms Billings: Total revenue plus the net change in deferred revenue from the beginning to the end of the period. Cloud Service Offerings : Represents individual term-based offerings deployed through web browser technologies or in a hybrid software and cloud configuration. Cloud service offerings that are bundled with other product offerings are not captured as a separate cloud service offering. Constant Currency (CC) Growth Rates: We attempt to represent the changes in the underlying business operations by eliminating fluctuations caused by changes in foreign currency exchange rates as well as eliminating hedge gains or losses recorded within the current and comparative periods. We calculate constant currency growth rates by (i) applying the applicable prior period exchange rates to current period results and (ii) excluding any gains or losses from foreign currency hedge contracts that are reported in the current and comparative periods. Design Business: Represents the combination of maintenance, product subscriptions, and all EBAs. Main products include, but are not limited to, AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT, Industry Collections, Revit, Inventor, Maya and 3ds Max. Certain products, such as our computer aided manufacturing solutions, incorporate both Design and Make functionality and are classified as Design. Enterprise Business Agreements (EBAs): Represents programs providing enterprise customers with token-based access to a broad pool of Autodesk products over a defined contract term. Flex: A pay-as-you-go consumption option to pre-purchase tokens to access any product available with Flex for a daily rate. Free Cash Flow: Cash flow from operating activities minus capital expenditures. Industry Collections: Autodesk Industry Collections are a combination of products and services that target a specific user objective and support a set of workflows for that objective. Our Industry Collections consist of: Autodesk Architecture, Engineering and Construction Collection, Autodesk Product Design and Manufacturing Collection, and Autodesk Media and Entertainment Collection. Maintenance Plan: Our maintenance plans provide our customers with a cost effective and predictable budgetary option to obtain the productivity benefits of our new releases and enhancements when and if released during the term of their contracts. Under our maintenance plans, customers are eligible to receive unspecified upgrades when and if available, and technical support. We recognize maintenance revenue over the term of the agreements, generally one year. Make Business: Represents certain cloud-based product subscriptions. Main products include, but are not limited to, Assemble, Autodesk Build, BIM Collaborate Pro, BuildingConnected, Fusion, and Flow Production Tracking. Certain products, such as Fusion, incorporate both Design and Make functionality and are classified as Make. Net Revenue Retention Rate (NR3): Measures the year-over-year change in Recurring Revenue for the population of customers that existed one year ago ("base customers"). Net revenue retention rate is calculated by dividing the current quarter Recurring Revenue related to base customers by the total corresponding quarter Recurring Revenue from one year ago. Recurring Revenue is based on USD reported revenue, and fluctuations caused by changes in foreign currency exchange rates and hedge gains or losses have not been eliminated. Recurring Revenue related to acquired companies, one year after acquisition, has been captured as existing customers until such data conforms to the calculation methodology. This may cause variability in the comparison. Other Revenue: Consists of revenue from consulting, and other products and services, and is recognized as the products are delivered and services are performed. Product Subscription: Provides customers a flexible, cost-effective way to access and manage 3D design, engineering, and entertainment software tools. Our product subscriptions currently represent a hybrid of desktop and cloud functionality, which provides a device-independent, collaborative design workflow for designers and their stakeholders. Recurring Revenue: Consists of the revenue for the period from our traditional maintenance plans, our subscription plan offerings, and certain Other revenue. It excludes subscription revenue related to third-party products. Recurring revenue acquired with the acquisition of a business is captured when total subscriptions are captured in our systems and may cause variability in the comparison of this calculation. Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO): The sum of total short-term, long-term, and unbilled deferred revenue. Current remaining performance obligations is the amount of revenue we expect to recognize in the next twelve months. Solution Provider : Solution Provider is the name of our channel partners who primarily serve our new transaction model customers worldwide. Solution Providers may also be resellers in relation to Autodesk solutions. Spend : The sum of cost of revenue and operating expenses. Subscription Plan: Comprises our term-based product subscriptions, cloud service offerings, and EBAs. Subscriptions represent a combined hybrid offering of desktop software and cloud functionality which provides a device-independent, collaborative design workflow for designers and their stakeholders. With subscription, customers can use our software anytime, anywhere, and get access to the latest updates to previous versions. Subscription Revenue: Includes our cloud-enabled term-based product subscriptions, cloud service offerings, and flexible EBAs. Unbilled Deferred Revenue: Unbilled deferred revenue represents contractually stated or committed orders under early renewal and multi-year billing plans for subscription, services, and maintenance for which the associated deferred revenue has not been recognized. Under FASB Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") Topic 606, unbilled deferred revenue is not included as a receivable or deferred revenue on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet. Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including quotations from management, statements in the paragraphs under "Business Outlook" above statements about our short-term and long-term goals, statements regarding our strategies, market and product positions, performance and results, and all statements that are not historical facts. There are a significant number of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from statements made in this press release, including: our strategy to develop and introduce new products and services and to move to platforms and capabilities, exposing us to risks such as limited customer acceptance (both new and existing customers), costs related to product defects, and large expenditures; global economic and political conditions, including changes in monetary and fiscal policy, foreign exchange headwinds, recessionary fears, supply chain disruptions, resulting inflationary pressures and hiring conditions; geopolitical tension and armed conflicts, and extreme weather events; costs and challenges associated with strategic acquisitions and investments; our ability to successfully implement and expand our transaction model; dependency on international revenue and operations, exposing us to significant international regulatory, economic, intellectual property, collections, currency exchange rate, taxation, political, and other risks, including risks related to the war against Ukraine launched by Russia and our exit from Russia and the current conflict between Israel and Hamas; inability to predict subscription renewal rates and their impact on our future revenue and operating results; existing and increased competition and rapidly evolving technological changes; fluctuation of our financial results, key metrics and other operating metrics; our transition from up front to annual billings for multi-year contracts; deriving a substantial portion of our net revenue from a small number of solutions, including our AutoCAD-based software products and collections; any failure to successfully execute and manage initiatives to realign or introduce new business and sales initiatives, including our new transaction model for Flex; net revenue, billings, earnings, cash flow, or new or existing subscriptions shortfalls; social and ethical issues relating to the use of artificial intelligence in our offerings; our ability to maintain security levels and service performance meeting the expectations of our customers, and the resources and costs required to avoid unanticipated downtime and prevent, detect and remediate performance degradation and security breaches; security incidents or other incidents compromising the integrity of our or our customers' offerings, services, data, or intellectual property; reliance on third parties to provide us with a number of operational and technical services as well as software; our highly complex software, which may contain undetected errors, defects, or vulnerabilities; increasing regulatory focus on privacy issues and expanding laws; governmental export and import controls that could impair our ability to compete in international markets or subject us to liability if we violate the controls; protection of our intellectual property rights and intellectual property infringement claims from others; the government procurement process; fluctuations in currency exchange rates; our debt service obligations; and our investment portfolio consisting of a variety of investment vehicles that are subject to interest rate trends, market volatility, and other economic factors. Our estimates as to tax rate are based on current interpretations of existing tax law and could be affected by changing interpretations, further guidance, and additional tax legislation. Further information on potential factors that could affect the financial results of Autodesk are included in Autodesk's Form 10-K and subsequent Forms 10-Q, which are on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Autodesk disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made. About Autodesk The world's designers, engineers, builders, and creators trust Autodesk to help them design and make anything. From the buildings we live and work in, to the cars we drive and the bridges we drive over. From the products we use and rely on, to the movies and games that inspire us. Autodesk's Design and Make Platform unlocks the power of data to accelerate insights and automate processes, empowering our customers with the technology to create the world around us and deliver better outcomes for their business and the planet. For more information, visit autodesk.com or follow @autodesk. #MakeAnything Autodesk uses its investors.autodesk.com website as a means of disclosing material non-public information, announcing upcoming investor conferences and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, you should monitor our investor relations website in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings and public conference calls and webcasts. Autodesk, AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT, BIM 360 and Fusion 360 are trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and service offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document. © 2024 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved. Autodesk, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (In millions, except per share data) Three Months Ended October 31, Nine Months Ended October 31, 2024 2023 2024 2023 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) Net revenue: Subscription $ 1,457 $ 1,314 $ 4,195 $ 3,777 Maintenance 9 12 31 40 Total subscription and maintenance revenue 1,466 1,326 4,226 3,817 Other 104 88 266 211 Total net revenue 1,570 1,414 4,492 4,028 Cost of revenue: Cost of subscription and maintenance revenue 105 94 305 285 Cost of other revenue 19 21 57 62 Amortization of developed technologies 23 12 62 34 Total cost of revenue 147 127 424 381 Gross profit 1,423 1,287 4,068 3,647 Operating expenses: Marketing and sales 525 439 1,474 1,344 Research and development 378 339 1,092 1,021 General and administrative 161 165 477 438 Amortization of purchased intangibles 13 10 37 31 Total operating expenses 1,077 953 3,080 2,834Lululemon CEO sees progress in company's efforts to address past lack of newnessThe Lebanon Ceasefire: A Pledge for Peace
"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum." Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC "Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" Thanks for your interest in Kalkine Media's content! To continue reading, please log in to your account or create your free account with us.Buccaneers looking to beat NFC South-rival Panthers and bolster hopes for a playoff berth
TORONTO, Dec. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- POET Technologies Inc. (" POET " or the " Corporation ") (TSXV: PTK; NASDAQ: POET), the designer and developer of the POET Optical InterposerTM, Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) and light sources for the data center, tele-communication and artificial intelligence markets, is pleased to announce that it has completed its previously announced registered direct offering with a single institutional investor that qualifies as an "accredited investor" under National Instrument 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions of the Canadian Securities Administrators. The Corporation issued 5,555,556 common shares (the " Common Shares ") and a warrant exercisable to acquire up to 2,777,778 Common Shares (the " Warrants ") to the investor for aggregate gross proceeds of US$25,000,002 (the " Offering ”). The combined price of one Common Share and accompanying Warrant in respect of one-half of one Common Share was US$4.50 (or approximately C$6.29). The exercise price of the Warrant is US$6.00 (or approximately C$8.39) per Common Share, and the Warrant is exercisable for a period of five years from the date of issuance. The Corporation intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for working capital related to its recently announced intention to expand assembly operations into Malaysia and for other corporate purposes. No commission or finder's fee was paid by the Corporation, and no underwriter or sales agent was engaged by the Corporation in connection with the Offering. The Offering is being made pursuant to a prospectus supplement dated December 3, 2024 (the " Prospectus Supplement ") to the short form base shelf prospectus (the " Base Shelf Prospectus ") of the Corporation dated September 6, 2024 filed with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces and territories of Canada, as well as with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as part of the Corporation's U.S. registration statement on Form F-10 (" Form F-10 ") (Registration No. 333-280553) under the U.S.-Canada Multijurisdictional Disclosure System and General Instruction II.L, which included the Prospectus Supplement with such additions thereto and deletions therefrom as may be permitted or required by Form F-10. Copies of the Prospectus Supplement, including the Base Shelf Prospectus, are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com and on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. The Offering remains subject to the final acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange (the " Exchange "). This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. About POET Technologies Inc. POET is a design and development company offering high-speed optical engines, light source products and custom optical modules to the artificial intelligence systems market and to hyperscale data centers. POET's photonic integration solutions are based on the POET Optical InterposerTM, a novel, patented platform that allows the seamless integration of electronic and photonic devices into a single chip using advanced wafer-level semiconductor manufacturing techniques. POET's Optical Interposer- based products are lower cost, consume less power than comparable products, are smaller in size and are readily scalable to high production volumes. In addition to providing high-speed (800G, 1.6T and above) optical engines and optical modules for AI clusters and hyperscale data centers, POET has designed and produced novel light source products for chip-to-chip data communication within and between AI servers, the next frontier for solving bandwidth and latency problems in AI systems. POET's Optical Interposer platform also solves device integration challenges across a broad range of communication, computing and sensing applications. POET is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with operations in Allentown, PA, Shenzhen, China, and Singapore. More information about POET is available on our website at www.poet-technologies.com . Adrian Brijbassi [email protected] Thomas R. Mika, EVP & CFO [email protected] This news release contains "forward-looking information" (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws) and "forward-looking statements" (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). Such statements or information are identified with words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "potential", "estimate", "propose", "project", "outlook", "foresee" or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding any potential outcome. Such statements include, without limitation, the Corporation's expectations with respect to its products, the scalability of the POET Optical Interposer, the success of the Corporation's products, and the Corporation's use of proceeds for the Offering and the ability to obtain the final approval of the Exchange. Such forward-looking information or statements are based on a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions which may cause actual results or other expectations to differ materially from those anticipated and which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, management's expectations regarding the size of the market for its products, the capability of its joint venture to produce products on time and at the expected costs, the performance and availability of certain components, and the success of its customers in achieving market penetration for their products. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including, without limitation, the attractiveness of the Corporation's product offerings, performance of its technology, the performance of key components, and ability of its customers to sell their products into the market. For further information concerning these and other risks and uncertainties, refer to the Corporation's filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and on the website of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov . Although the Corporation believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information or statements are reasonable, prospective investors in the Corporation's securities should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because the Corporation can provide no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking information and statements contained in this news release are as of the date of this news release and the Corporation assumes no obligation to update or revise this forward-looking information and statements except as required by applicable securities laws. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. 120 Eglinton Avenue, East, Suite 1107, Toronto, ON, M4P 1E2- Tel: 416-368-9411 - Fax: 416-322- 5075
ATLANTA (AP) — A judge is weighing whether a Georgia state Senate committee has the right to subpoena testimony and documents from Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as it looks into whether she has engaged in misconduct during her prosecution of President-elect Donald Trump. The Republican-led committee sent subpoenas to Willis in August seeking to compel her to testify at its September meeting and to produce scores of documents. The committee was formed earlier this year to examine allegations of “various forms of misconduct” by Willis, an elected Democrat, during her prosecution of Trump and others over their efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 election loss in Georgia. Willis' attorney, former Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes, told Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram during a hearing Tuesday that although the Georgia General Assembly has subpoena power, that power is not automatically conferred on a single legislative chamber or its committees. Even if the committee did have such power, he argued, the subpoenas in question are overly broad and not related to a legitimate legislative need. Barnes said the focus on Willis and her investigation into Trump shows that the committee was politically motivated and not a legitimate inquiry into the practices of district attorneys' offices: “What they were trying to do is chill the prosecution of Donald Trump and find out what they had.” Josh Belinfante, a lawyer representing the lawmakers, said there is nothing in the Georgia Constitution that prohibits the Senate from issuing a subpoena. The duly formed interim committee is looking into whether new legislation is needed to regulate the practices of district attorneys' offices in the state, he argued. “They are investigating and making an inquiry into these allegations that may show that existing state laws, including those establishing the processes for selecting, hiring and compensating special assistant district attorneys, are inadequate,” Belinfante said. The resolution creating the committee focused in particular on Willis’ hiring of special prosecutor Nathan Wade , with whom she had a romantic relationship , to lead the prosecution against Trump and others. It says the relationship amounted to a “clear conflict of interest and a fraud upon the taxpayers” of the county and state. One of the committee’s subpoenas orders Wills to produce documents related to Wade, including documents related to his hiring and payment, documents related to money or items of value that Wade and Willis may have exchanged, text messages and emails between the two, and their phone records. The committee also requested any documents her office sent in response to requests from the U.S. House, as well as communications Willis and her office had with the White House, the U.S. Justice Department and the House relating to the 2020 presidential election. And they asked for documents related to federal grant money Willis’ office has received. Before the deadlines in the subpoenas, Willis challenged them in court. Willis’ challenge was pending in mid-September when she skipped a hearing during which the committee members had hoped to question her. In October, the committee asked Ingram to require Willis to comply with the subpoenas. The committee’s lawyers wrote in a court filing that Willis’ failure to do so had delayed its ability to finish its inquiry and to provide recommendations for any legislation or changes in appropriations that might result. Barnes also argued that once the regular legislative session has adjourned, which happened in March this year, legislative committees can meet to study issues and come up with recommendations but do not have the power to compel someone to appear or produce documents. Belinfante rejected that, saying the state Constitution expressly permits the creation of interim committees and allows them to make their rules. Even if these subpoenas were validly issued, Barnes argued, they ask for too much, including private and personal information that is not a legitimate target of a legislative subpoena. Belinfante said the lawmakers are simply trying to do their jobs. He asked that Willis be ordered to appear before the committee in early January. He also asked that she be ordered to provide the requested documents and explain what privilege justifies any that are excluded. With a glaring lack of state case law on the issue of the General Assembly's subpoena power, that's one issue Ingram will have to address. She said she will consider the arguments and release her order as soon as she can. Willis and Wade have acknowledged that they had a relationship but have said it began after he was hired and ended before the indictment against Trump was filed. Trump and other defendants argued that the relationship created a conflict of interest that should disqualify Willis and her office from continuing with her prosecution of the case. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled in March that Willis’ actions showed a “tremendous lapse in judgment,” but he did not find a conflict of interest that would disqualify Willis. He said she could continue her prosecution as long as Wade stepped aside, which he did. Trump and others have appealed that ruling to the Georgia Court of Appeals, and that appeal remains pending.Give the Gift of Movies at Regal this Holiday Season
AUTODESK, INC. ANNOUNCES FISCAL 2025 THIRD QUARTER RESULTS
The standard Lorem Ipsum passage, used since the 1500s "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum." Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC "Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?" Thanks for your interest in Kalkine Media's content! To continue reading, please log in to your account or create your free account with us.