State AGs suing U.S. drug maker Amgen

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who led the investigation, said in a statement released Friday that Amgen, based in Thousand Oaks, Calif., allowed medical practices to bill insurers, including state Medicaid programs, for extra amounts of the drug given out as free samples, The New York Times reported.

U.S. sues Canadian firm over bullet vests

In a release issued Friday, Justice Department officials said they filed suit against Lincoln Fabrics Ltd. and its American subsidiary under the False Claims Act, alleging they were aware the woven Zylon used in vests sold to the U.S. government degraded quickly over time, especially in hot and humid conditions.

Ford to close Canadian plant

The Canadian Auto Workers union conceded Friday it had little leverage to stop the closure of the St. Thomas, Ontario, plant -- which makes now-unpopular full-size cars, The Toronto Star reported.

Chrysler offers new round of buyouts

The automaker said Friday that while terms vary from plant to plant, they are similar to offers made previously this year under its bankruptcy proceedings, The Detroit News reported.

Judge: Spammer owes Facebook $711 million

U.S. District Court Judge Jeremy Fogel ruled in San Jose, Calif., Thursday that Sanford Wallace must pay Facebook after employing compromised user accounts to send out 14 million junk e-mails to the Web site's members, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Madoff: SEC could have had him earlier

In a jailhouse interview given by Madoff to the SEC and released Friday, the disgraced financier said investigators failed to check basics, such as his account with Wall Street's central clearinghouse and records of the firms he falsely claimed were handling his trades, The New York Times reported.

Judge: Spammer owes Facebook $711 million

U.S. District Court Judge Jeremy Fogel ruled in San Jose, Calif., Thursday that Sanford Wallace must pay Facebook after employing compromised user accounts to send out 14 million junk e-mails to the Web site's members, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Madoff: SEC could have had him earlier

In a jailhouse interview given by Madoff to the SEC and released Friday, the disgraced financier said investigators failed to check basics, such as his account with Wall Street's central clearinghouse and records of the firms he falsely claimed were handling his trades, The New York Times reported.

California National, other banks seized

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said the 68-branch California National, of Los Angeles, and eight smaller banks also owned by FBOP, a privately held Oak Park, Ill., company, were seized by regulators Friday and acquired by U.S. Bank, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Study: Inheritance produces inequality

A team of anthropologists from Florida State University studied small scale societies ranging from egalitarian hunter-gatherers to hierarchical farmers and herders in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. They found that the less a society passes down in the form of inheritance and the more its members rely on their wits, social connections and strength to make a living, the narrower the wealth disparities, the school said in a release Friday.

California National, other banks seized

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said the 68-branch California National, of Los Angeles, and eight smaller banks also owned by FBOP, a privately held Oak Park, Ill., company, were seized by regulators Friday and acquired by U.S. Bank, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Study: Inheritance produces inequality

A team of anthropologists from Florida State University studied small scale societies ranging from egalitarian hunter-gatherers to hierarchical farmers and herders in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. They found that the less a society passes down in the form of inheritance and the more its members rely on their wits, social connections and strength to make a living, the narrower the wealth disparities, the school said in a release Friday.