As he makes his way to serving out his prison term, Andy Fastow apparently has agreed to help lawyers representing Enron shareholders in their suit against investment bankers.  Last year the district judge overseeing the shareholders’ case against the bankers dismissed several banks from the suit based on the view that shareholders had to prove that banks were directly involved in the manipulation of Enron’s financial statements or otherwise directly involved in misleading investors.  That standard of proof is higher than what shareholders wanted—the ability to show that bankers aided and abetted Enron’s actions.  However, Fastow has agreed to be deposed so that he can provide specific details about the role bankers played in Enron’s demise.  While analysts disagree about whether jurors will credit Fastow’s deposition given his admission of wrongdoing, Fastow is certainly bending over backwards to help out.  Now the cynic in me wants to say that Fastow’s helpfulness stems only from his desire to gain leniency in the sentencing process.  However, Fastow has indicated that he is motivated by the desire not to be a scapegoat as well as his view that banks really were involved in manipulation and hence should face some repercussions for that involvement.  Cynicism notwithstanding, I also think Fastow is motivated by genuine regret and a desire to salvage his (and his family’s) reputation.

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