IN THE COURTS

SPITZER, GRASSO AT STALEMATE OVER PAY LAWSUIT A former chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, Richard Grasso, and the New York attorney general, Eliot Spitzer, are still in a stalemate over a lawsuit about Mr. Grasso’s pay one month after a judge called for an out-of-court settlement.

Mr. Grasso said in an interview yesterday that he would be willing to settle if Mr. Spitzer abandons his claims and the exchange paid $48 million he’s owed to charity. Mr. Grasso’s co-defendant and former head of the NYSE’s compensation committee, Kenneth Langone, said in an interview with the CNBC financial news network that he’ll settle if Mr. Spitzer apologizes for accusing him of misleading NYSE directors.

– Bloomberg News

POLITICS

CORZINE ADDS ANOTHER FORMER GOLDMAN EXECUTIVE TO STAFF Governor Corzine of New Jersey will appoint another former Goldman Sachs colleague to his administration, naming Nancy Feldman to oversee the state’s borrowing, according to two people briefed on the plans.

Ms. Feldman was most recently head of research for Goldman’s municipal bond department. She will join other former Goldman executives – the treasurer, Bradley Abelow; the economic growth director, Gary Rose, and the school construction authority monitor, Barry Zubrow – who all are now working for Mr. Corzine, a former chairman and chief executive of the investment bank.

– Bloomberg News

TRADEMARKS

APPLE COMPUTER WINS IN TRADEMARK DISPUTE WITH BEATLES Apple Computer won a trademark dispute with the Beatles over its iTunes music store, averting the threat the company would have to strip its name and logo off the world’s leading music download service. The Beatles’ Apple Corps, which represents the pop band’s business interests, sued the computer maker in London, claiming it held the exclusive right to use the trademark on music under a 1991 agreement between the companies. The High Court rejected the company’s case yesterday, saying that the use of the logo on iTunes didn’t mean Apple Computer was branding the recordings offered for sale on the site. – Bloomberg News

ENERGY

CRUDE OIL FALLS AS IRAN SAYS IT WANTS TO EASE TENSIONS WITH U.S.

Crude oil fell below $70 a barrel in New York after Iran said it was seeking ways to ease tensions with America over the Islamic republic’s nuclear program.

President Ahmadinejad of Iran wrote a letter to President Bush proposing “new ways” to improve relations between the two states, said a government spokesman. Concern that the standoff would lead to sanctions against Iran, the fourth-biggest oil producer, contributed to a 14% jump in prices this year.

– Bloomberg News

HAWAII HALTS ITS PRICE CONTROLS ON GAS Hawaii’s gasoline price controls have sputtered to a stop. The island state, whose drivers pay the highest pump prices in the nation, has given up on price caps after an eight-month, first-in-thenation experiment. Some complained that the restrictions actually led to higher prices, because oil companies knew they could charge up to the maximum allowed.

– Associated Press

IN BRIEF

The chief executive of AT&T, Edward Whitacre, said yesterday the company is pushing ahead with a plan to attempt to squeeze cable companies with a new broadband television service that is being rolled out in test markets … Vonage Holdings set aside as much as 15% of its planned initial public offering for customers who helped propel the growth of the company’s Internet phone service.

– Dow Jones Newswires and Bloomberg News