The company declined to comment on the criminal cases or whether it had plans to sue former executives.

Thomas H. Lee Partners in turn sued Refco's auditors and former executives claiming they hid the fraud which caused Refco's collapse.

Disgraced technology group Olympus is suing 19 former and current executives for up to 3.6bn yen (£30m), as it tries to recover from one of Japan's worst ever corporate scandals.

Last week, the company sued 19 current and former executives, including the current president, Shuichi Takayama, over their roles in concealing the losses.

Creating new felonies or making it easier for shareholders to sue chief executives, he has cautioned, would drain corporate America of its risk-taking spirit and take a toll on the economy's growth.

Federal regulators yesterday sued former top executives of Gateway Inc., accusing them of inflating earnings three years ago to meet analysts' expectations.

The certification also makes it easier for shareholders to sue executives if accounting problems do surface at a company because plaintiffs will have the sworn statement to use as evidence, securities lawyers said.

Shareholders have sued executives, for example, for innocuous predictions during company celebrations that the company's profits would rise.

Shareholders have sued the company, its board and executives in an effort to revoke the stock options that were granted to Mr. McGuire.

The laws would also make it easier for shareholders to sue executives and board members for damages if they are found guilty of spreading false information.