Fletcher leak cost woman her job

The woman who faxed a confidential Fletcher Challenge document to a sharetrading brother-in-law sparking an insider-trading investigation lost her job fordoing so.

Although the Securities Commission has refused to name the woman, the Herald can reveal that she is Elizabeth Corby, a Remuera project manager.

One of her brothers-in-law is Paul Hyslop, who resigned last week as executive director of Wilson Neill after the Herald identified him as the businessman responsible for leaking the document to brokers and the media, then making $40,000 when the Fletcher Paper share price rose.

In April last year, Mrs Corby was an administrator for Planit, a private financial planning firm contracted to Fletcher Challenge.

The document a draft press release outlining merger plans for Fletcher Challenge Paper and Fletcher Challenge Canada was accidentally posted on an electronic noticeboard to which she had access.

By the time Fletcher Challenge management realised the bungle and warned workers not to disseminate the document, Mrs Corby had faxed a copy to her other brother-in-law, Remuera chemical engineer Keith Stewart, who owned Fletcher Paper shares.

Over the next week, Mr Stewart bought a further $250,000 of Fletcher Paper shares.

Mrs Corby's husband, accountant Kieran Corby, also bought "a relatively small number" of shares in the couple's joint name, says a Securities Commission report.

The commission released its report last week but did not name any of the players, saying limitations in the law meant Mr Hyslop and Mr Stewart could not be prosecuted, and Mrs Corby was "a victim of circumstance."

Mr Hyslop took the Herald to court last week in an unsuccessful bid to stop publication of his name.

Mrs Corby said on Friday that she would talk to the Herald.

But yesterday, she changed her mind and refused to speak.

But she told the Serious Fraud Office that she faxed the first page of the 10-page draft press release to Mr Stewart believing it had been made public.

After realising its sensitivity, she told Mr Stewart to destroy it.

The commission's report says Mr Stewart, who also refused to speak to the Herald yesterday, initially told investigators he had torn the fax up, but later said he had left it on his desk.

Mr Hyslop said in court last week that he secretly copied the document when he saw it on Mr Stewart's desk about five days later.

He bought about $500,000 of Fletcher Paper shares before distributing the fax to journalists and brokers a few days later, then sold the stock for a $40,000 gross profit.

Mrs Corby's contract with Planit was terminated as soon as her role in the affair was revealed, Planit director Michael Littlewood said yesterday.

She sued the company for breach of contract, but the matter was settled out of court in July with Planit agreeing to buy out her and her husband's stake in the company.

Commerce Minister Paul Swain said yesterday that he planned to get tough on insider trading after 12 years without a prosecution under present laws.

Mr Swain said he wanted actions such as those of Mr Hyslop to come within the net of tougher laws designed to catch people who had access to inside information which was used for personal gain.