US economy adds 74K jobs; rate falls to 6.7 pct.

WASHINGTON — The weakest month of hiring in three years ended 2013 on a sluggish note and raised questions about whether the U.S. job market can sustain its recent strong gains.

Employers added a scant 74,000 jobs in December after averaging 214,000 in the previous four months. Economists cautioned that cold weather likely played a role in the sharp slowdown. Many analysts said they would need to see more data before they could tell whether the job market had lost momentum.

The Labor Department said Friday that the unemployment rate fell from 7 percent in November to 6.7 percent, its lowest level since October 2008. But the drop occurred mostly because many Americans stopped looking for jobs. Once people without jobs stop looking for one, the government no longer counts them as unemployed.

The proportion of people either working or looking for work fell to 62.8 percent, matching a nearly 36-year low. Last month's expiration of extended unemployment benefits for 1.3 million long-term unemployed could accelerate that trend if many of them stop looking for work. Beneficiaries had been required to look for work to receive unemployment checks.

The stock market fell in early trading. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 34 points in late-morning trading. And the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.88 percent from 2.97 late Thursday — a drop that is normally a sign of a slowing economy.

It's unclear whether the sharp hiring slowdown might lead the Federal Reserve to rethink its plan to slow its stimulus efforts. The Fed decided last month to pare its monthly bond purchases, which have been designed to lower interest rates to spur borrowing and spending.

"I don't think the Fed is going to be panicked by this," said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors.

Naroff suggested that the 6.7 percent unemployment rate — a drop of more than a full percentage point since 2013 began — will eventually lead many employers to raise wages.

"It doesn't change what they're thinking," Naroff said of the Fed.

Many economists said it would be premature to conclude from Friday's report that the economy is weakening.

"We stop short of making larger observations based on this number," said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at brokerage firm BTIG. "The economy, based on any number of other indicators, has been picking up steam of late which makes today's number..curious."

Unusually cold weather might have slowed hiring in December. Construction companies, which are heavily dependent on weather conditions, cut 16,000 jobs, the biggest drop in 20 months.

Michael Hanson, an economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, estimated that the cold weather lowered hiring by about 75,000 jobs.

It would still be a weak report even if those jobs were added back in, Hanson said. But he cautioned against reading too much into a single month's jobs report.

"It's a warning sign that things maybe weren't as strong as we thought," Hanson said. But "it's really hard to make an inference from one number."

Other economists were also skeptical. Mark Vitner of Wells Fargo noted that several industries reported unusually steep job losses. Accounting and bookkeeping services, for example, lost 24,700 jobs, the most in nearly 11 years.

And performing arts and spectator sports cut 11,600, the most in 2½ years. The movie industry shed 13,700 jobs.

"These are not the areas that tend to sway the employment report," Vitner said.

Health care cut 6,000 positions, that industry's first monthly cut in 10 years. It could raise questions about the effect of President Barack Obama's health care reform.

Vitner noted that health care layoffs had been announced over the fall and that these figures appear to be "genuine."

Transportation and warehousing cut some jobs, suggesting that shippers hired fewer workers for the holidays. Governments cut 13,000 positions.

Despite December's sharp slowdown, monthly job gains averaged 182,000 last year, nearly matching the average monthly gains for the previous two years.

One bright spot was manufacturing. Factories added 9,000 positions, the fifth straight gain. Still, that's down from 31,000 in November. Retailers added 55,000 jobs.

Recent data have painted a picture of an economy on the steady rise. Exports hit a record level in November, lowering the U.S. trade deficit. Businesses have ordered more manufactured goods. Auto sales reached a six-year high in 2013.

Analysts now estimate that the economy expanded at a healthy annual rate of 3 percent to 3.5 percent in the October-December quarter. That's up from earlier forecasts of a 2 percent rate or less. It would follow a strong 4.1 percent growth rate reported for the July-September quarter.

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AP Economics Writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.

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Follow Chris Rugaber on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/ChrisRugaber

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NY AG: BlackRock agrees to stop analyst surveys

NEW YORK — Asset manager BlackRock agreed to end a stock analyst survey program under an agreement that New York's top prosecutor on Thursday said was the result of a financial industry investigation into how the release of some Wall Street analyst information gives some investors an unfair advantage.

New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said BlackRock's surveys would ask analysts about companies they followed and were frequently timed before the official release of publicly available opinions.

Under the program, BlackRock would combine survey responses with the publicly available analyst opinions to make investment decisions, Schneiderman said.

"To their credit, they recognized this was a problematic area and agreed to stop completely," Schneiderman said.

BlackRock didn't confirm or deny any of the attorney general's findings in making the agreement with Schneiderman's office. The company also agreed to pay $400,000 to cover the costs of the investigation and Schneiderman said BlackRock would be cooperating in the office's continuing investigation.

A call to BlackRock seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Schneiderman has made a cause of taking on what he has called "Insider Trading 2.0" — the release of extra or early information to some market players. Modern stock trading is dominated by automated computer systems that make trades in fractions of a second, and traders can profit from receiving data even milliseconds before its public release.

In July, Schneiderman reached an agreement with Thomson Reuters in which the news and business information provider agreed to stop distributing results of consumer surveys a couple of seconds early to clients who paid for advanced access.

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Correction: Gadget Show-T-Mobile story

LAS VEGAS — In a story Jan. 8 about T-Mobile, The Associated Press reported erroneously that the company will pay up to $300 per line for people who switch from other companies. The correct figure is $350.

A corrected version of the story is below:

T-Mobile to pay customers leaving rivals

T-Mobile aims to lure new customers by paying their termination fees, reports subscriber gains

By PETER SVENSSON

AP Technology Writer

LAS VEGAS (AP) — T-Mobile US Inc., the country's fourth-largest wireless carrier, is aiming to lure subscribers from rivals by paying the fees required to break their service contracts.

Wednesday's announcement, at the International CES gadget show in Las Vegas, is the next step in T-Mobile's campaign to bolster its fortunes by shaking up conventions in the wireless industry. The strategy appears to be working: T-Mobile reported solid subscriber gains for the last three months of 2013. It started gaining subscribers last year after several years of losses to larger carriers AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless.

T-Mobile CEO John Legere said the company will pay early termination fees of up to $350 per line for people who switch from other companies.

"It's part of the overall industry scam," Legere said of early termination fees. "What we are going to do is force the industry to change."

T-Mobile eliminated early termination fees and service contracts last year. Instead, customers buy phones on installment plans and pay month to month for service. If they want to cancel service, they have to pay off the balance on their phones.

The initiative to pay switchers comes after AT&T Inc. said last week that it would pay $200 to people who switch — but only if they switch from T-Mobile. AT&T bills it as a limited-time offer.

The T-Mobile offer is indefinite.

"This one is here to stay," the CEO said. "This is becoming a fundamental part of our philosophy."

Legere and AT&T are in a bit of a feud: the flashy CEO went to an AT&T party in Las Vegas on Monday and was ejected by security. Legere said he and T-Mobile's chief financial officer had been given tickets by the manager of Macklemore, the rap artist who performed at the party. When Legere was encircled by huge security guards, CFO Braxton Carter hid in the bathroom, Legere said.

"Do you have any idea how much material you're going to give me if you do this?" Legere asked the security personnel. He was still thrown out, and as he guessed, the incident got a lot of attention. AT&T hasn't commented on it.

T-Mobile said it gained 1.6 million subscribers in the fourth quarter, helped by the elimination of service contracts and data fees when roaming abroad. Legere said the company is gaining at least two subscribers from AT&T and Sprint for each customer departing for those carriers. In relation to Verizon, it's gaining 1.3 customers for each one lost.

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Bill key to Obama trade push faces Dem opposition

WASHINGTON — Legislation key to President Barack Obama's agenda to boost exports to the fast-growing economies of the Asia-Pacific is being welcomed by business but faces stiff opposition from Obama's fellow Democrats.

A bill to grant the president "fast track" authority for negotiating trade deals was introduced Thursday, co-sponsored by a senior Democrat and two leading Republicans.

Fast track, which was last approved in 2002 and expired in 2007, assures that the administration can negotiate trade deals that Congress can accept or reject but cannot change.

The administration will be counting on strong support from Republicans, who traditionally are more supportive of free trade pacts than Democrats. Such bipartisanship, however, is a rarity in the divisive political atmosphere that has severely hampered Obama and last fall culminated in a partial government shutdown.

Approval of fast track would be key to adoption of a trans-Pacific trade agreement the U.S. is closing in on with 11 other nations that in all account for some 40 percent of global gross domestic product. The pact is central to the administration's policy shift toward Asia, and in its effort to drum up exports.

The bill is also intended to apply to a trade pact under negotiation with the 28-member European Union.

But Rep. Sander Levin, the top Democrat on the House committee overseeing trade, quickly announced his opposition to the fast-track legislation, saying it should stipulate a more active role for Congress, allow greater scrutiny of the negotiations by lawmakers and tackle currency manipulation.

"The vast majority of Democrats feel that we need to have a much more active, vigorous role for Congress in addressing trade issues, and there needs to be much more transparency and issues like currency have to be addressed," Levin told reporters.

Lawmakers of both parties have expressed concern that trading partners such as Japan, which is part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, undervalue their currencies to boost their exports.

The bill's sponsors, however, contend it addresses those concerns, and establishes new goals for U.S. negotiators on digital trade, and updates those on protection of intellectual property and labor and environmental standards. They say the legislation would allow every lawmaker access to the negotiations.

"This is our opportunity to tell the administration — and our trading partners — what Congress' negotiating priorities are," Sen. Max Baucus, Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

Baucus, whose recent nomination to become U.S. ambassador to China could leave him little time left to push the bill forward, made the comment in a joint statement with his co-sponsors of the bill. They are Sen. Orrin Hatch, the senior Republican on the finance committee, and Dave Camp, Republican chair of the House Ways and Means Committee on which Levin also sits.

The Obama administration welcomed the bill as key to implementing its strategy to increase exports and support more American jobs at higher wages.

"We look forward to working with Democrats and Republicans in Congress throughout the legislative process to pass Trade Promotion Authority legislation with as broad bipartisan support as possible," a White House statement said.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said he expected to have a "robust conversation" with lawmakers about how trade agreements should be negotiated and the role of Congress in that process.

Fast track is vital not just for the eventual ratification of a trade pact, but also likely important for finalizing the TPP. It would help assure other nations that Congress will not tinker with what's agreed upon by U.S. negotiators who will be hoping to wrap up a deal in the coming months — perhaps before Obama visits Asia in April.

"To get the best possible deal, I think they are going to need fast track," said Susan Schwab, who served as U.S. trade representative during the presidency of George W. Bush.

But fast track has never been popular among unions and many Democrats.

Some 151 Democrats and 22 Republicans — out of 435 members of the House — have already come out in opposition to renewal of fast track unless Congress has a more "meaningful role" in forging trade agreements. Sizeable numbers of Democrats have also come out against the TPP, principally because they argue it will cost American jobs.

Schwab said quick passage of fast track would depend on how hard the president pushes for it and whether the Democratic leadership in Congress will get behind it.

"There's a lot of support from the Republican side, if not unanimity. The White House needs to get out there and get Democratic leadership in the House and Senate to be pro-active, and then it could move, fairly rapidly," she said, but added that midterm elections in November won't make it easier to win Democratic backing.

The fast track bill would renew the president's trade promotion authority for up to seven years.

The business community, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, quickly voiced its support Thursday, as did some Democrats.

Five House members from the New Democrat Coalition said the bill made key improvements to the 2002 fast track, and would help in efforts eliminate unfair barriers for American companies.

But five senators appeared to voice doubts, urging the administration to work directly with Congress before considering renewal of fast track, and calling for U.S. trade negotiators to be more accountable to Congress.

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Briar defends breach delay

The Briar Group is defending a six-week delay in notifying the public that its restaurant customers' credit card data were stolen last fall, saying it took that long to confirm hackers had breached its system.

But security experts say it shouldn't take that long to establish a breach has occurred, noting that the Briar Group had hired the well-regarded firm McGladrey LLP to investigate the matter.

"It doesn't take a month to identify a breach," said Al Pascual, senior analyst of security, risk and fraud at Javelin Strategy & Research in Pleasanton, Calif.

Meanwhile, two weeks after confirming the breach, the Briar Group still doesn't know the number of customer accounts accessed and how, or the exact timeframe in which it occurred.

"Our investigation into the nature and scope of the breach is ongoing," spokeswoman Diana Pisciotta said.

After receiving initial calls from customers about unauthorized credit card transactions on Nov. 15, the Briar Group said it immediately asked McGladrey to investigate. The company notified Attorney General Martha Coakley of the investigation on Nov. 21. The Briar Group, which owns 10 restaurants including Ned Devine's, Harp, Anthem and M.J. O'Connor's, only publicly announced on Dec. 27 that its payment system was compromised, and stated it believed the breach ran from "sometime in October" to early November.

"Investigations into potential security breaches can take a significant amount of time," Pisciotta said. "We notified customers once we were aware that an actual breach had occurred and had enough information to provide reasonable notice, which wasn't until late December."

It was the second security intrusion for the company, which in 2011 paid $110,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by Coakley for its failure to secure customers' information in a 2009 breach.

Coakley spokesman Christopher Loh said in the current case, "Our investigation ... is focused on determining if any violations of state law and the prior consent judgment occurred, as well as the extent of the breach."

A good security team should have identified the breach quickly, but it's not uncommon for probes to take a month or longer, said Chris Morales, research director at NSS Labs, an information security research and advisory firm.

"It's not reasonable or practical, but it's really how long sometimes it takes," he said. "I've been to very large enterprises with very large security teams that are good that also have had similar issues. The whole industry still needs to change the way it does certain things."

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Cambridge company wins NASA job

NASA has awarded Cambridge-based Charles River Analytics a contract to build a system that analyzes satellite imagery to detect major changes, including volcanic eruptions, so scientists can respond more quickly to environmental events.

The $750,000 contract, which follows on an initial $125,000 award in 2012, will be used to develop the system known as DIPSARS for Discovery of Interesting Patterns and Semantic Analysis in Remote Space, said Daniel Stouch, who heads up the project for CRA. It will use CRA's Object Detection Framework, which sifts through the mountains of satellite pictures and detects changes in real-time, Stouch said.

"As we learn more about our world and the physical and social processes in it, it's important to be able to perceive and understand events and phenomena from a global perspective," Stouch said.

CRA said the system will let NASA "process and analyze which data is relevant, important and interesting enough to prompt follow-on action." A NASA spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.

The ODF is best suited to quickly detect events such as volcanic eruptions, forest fires and algae blooms, Stouch said.

"It might be something you can see from space, but you might not see from the ground," Stouch said.

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More towns eye casino $

The state Gaming Commission is bracing for a rush of petitions from cities and towns that believe casino developers have wrongly denied them surrounding community status, which entitles them to payments to make up for the stress casinos would put on their roads and infrastructure.

Malden and Somerville have filed petitions for surrounding community status to Mohegan Sun's casino in Revere, and Northampton has filed for MGM's Springfield project. Chelsea is expected to file for Wynn Resorts' Everett project before Monday's deadline.

Mohegan reps met for the first time Tuesday with Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh, who's said he may insist on host community status for both the Revere and Everett proposals, which would require a filing with the gaming panel and voter approval before either casino could be licensed.

The Gaming Commission plans to decide Feb. 6 who is and isn't a surrounding community. If communities disagree, they can seek arbitration.

"We look at the facts and we make a decision," Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby said. "If we decide they're not a surrounding community, because essentially there's no material adverse impact in our judgment, then it's over."

Mohegan has designated Boston, Winthrop and Chelsea surrounding communities to its project at Suffolk Downs in Revere, and has offered a separate joint agreement to Malden, Saugus, Lynn, Salem, and Medford. Still, Malden has petitioned the commission for surrounding community status.

"Malden shares its entire easterly border with the city of Revere, and it is reasonably foreseeable that Mohegan's proposed development will impact Malden's infrastructure," city solicitor Kathryn Fallon wrote in a memo dated Tuesday, which was obtained by the Herald.

Mohegan and Suffolk Downs spokesman Chip Tuttle said a joint agreement was presented because impacts were all transportation-related, and the deal aims to "create a way for all of them to share in a resource that would help with regional transportation issues."

Tuttle said Mohegan had a "great initial meeting" with Walsh and members of his staff Tuesday. Walsh's office did not comment on the meeting.

Chelsea city manager Jay Ash said Wynn Resorts — which designated only Boston and Medford as surrounding communities — abruptly stopped negotiations six weeks ago.

"I was befuddled and incensed," Ash said. "It's kind of preposterous to think that communities that are within a mile of a gaming establishment would not be considered surrounding communities."

Wynn spokesman Michael Weaver said, "We determined that Chelsea would not be negatively impacted by our project and consequently would not be designated a surrounding community."

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Micro-units perfect fit for young pros

Micro-apartments aren't for everyone, but for young professionals starting out who embrace a leaner and more collegial lifestyle, it doesn't seem that it's that much of a compromise.

A recent tour of Factory 63 on Melcher Street in South Boston's Fort Point neighborhood, which has 23 "innovation micro-apartments," dispelled some misconceptions about a living experiment seen as a way to keep young professional people in the city. Factory 63's units are all rented and there's a waiting list. And, there are hundreds more of these units set to be built in an area dubbed the Innovation District.

"The idea here is to engage the community, especially the artists who live here, in a way that adds value for the residents," said Factory 63 property manager Jessica Ryan, pointing to Fort Point artists' work hanging on the walls and revolving exhibits by Design Museum Boston, which occupies a gallery in the common space. "We want to respect and hold on to what is already here in the neighborhood."

The common space is open to the public during business hours, and there are five artist live/work spaces in the building.

At rents ranging from $1,699 for a 374-square-foot unit to $2,450 for 597 square feet, the market-rate micro-apartments at Factory 63 are expensive, though the rent does include heat and central air conditioning, with only a $30-a-month electric bill. But residents feel the expense is worth it.

When Ross Chanowski moved into his 447-square-foot micro-unit last March, he was working in a big local ad agency that had just moved to the Seaport District. He said he could have rented a regular-sized apartment, but chose the micro-apartment instead because of the character of the building, a former shoe factory, and the focus on integrating living and working.

"I didn't just want an apartment, but a place to live, work, play, innovate and create," the 25-year-old Newton native said. "It's in a great neighborhood near downtown and I've gotten to know most of the people in the building, made friends and business connections. You don't just shut your door."

Phoebe K. Flemming is living in only 337 square feet, with her two dogs, in a unit at Factory 63 she won through a city lottery system, paying about $1,200 a month. She said initially she was skeptical about the smaller space because her Southie apartment had 700 square feet.

"This place has more of a neighborhood feel than I thought it would, and I liked the common space," said Flemming, a 31-year-old dietician consultant and executive director of the nonprofit South Boston Grows.

Developer Gerding Edlen's support of sustainability also appealed to her. The building is LEED Gold certified, with energy-efficient heating and cooling, appliances and fixtures.

"I like the idea of lean and green," Flemming said.

The Wi-Fi-enabled common space on the first floor has free coffee and tea, benches to work on, couches to sit on and long tables, and a conference room to hold business meetings. There is no charge to use the space.

The units at Factory 63 have wood floors and exposed brick, 13-foot wood-beam ceilings and two tall windows, which makes the spaces feel larger and less cramped. The galley kitchens have white Corian counters, a few cabinets and full-size stainless steel appliances. Walls divide the kitchen from the combination living/dining area and bedroom area, which has enough space for a queen-size bed. The bathroom is surprisingly roomy, with a space-saving stacked washer and dryer.

Living in such small quarters requires residents to be neat and orderly.

"You can't have a lot of stuff," Flemming said " I've spent the past few years decluttering my life."

Each resident does get an extra 9-square-foot storage cube on the bottom floor.

Flemming, whose living/bedroom area is smaller than Chanowski's, built a loft bed, which gives her more living space in the main room.

"I have two couches in there and friends come over all the time," Flemming said. "My place is kind of a focal point. But it is small and you have to adapt to that."

Chanowski said he does not feel that his place is too small to live and work in, or have a few people over.

"It's not just that I have to live my life lean here, I want to live my life lean," Chanowski said. "My idea is to live small and think big."

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Target: Data breach caught up to 70M customers

NEW YORK — Target's December security breach was significantly more extensive and affected millions more shoppers than the company reported last month.

The nation's second largest discounter said Friday that personal information — including names, phone numbers as well as email and mailing addresses — was stolen from as many as 70 million customers as part of a pre-Christmas data breach.

Target Corp. announced in December that about 40 million credit and debit cards may have been affected by a data breach that happened between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 — just as the holiday shopping season was getting into gear.

According to the company's investigation, criminals also took non-credit card related data for some 70 million shoppers who could have made purchases at Target stores outside the late Nov. to mid-Dec. timeframe. Some overlap exists between the two data sets, the company said Friday.

"I know that it is frustrating for our guests to learn that this information was taken and we are truly sorry they are having to endure this," said Gregg Steinhafel, Target chairman, president and CEO, in a statement.

The chain also indicated that holiday sales were hurt by the breach. Target cut its forecast for fourth-quarter earnings, a key sales barometer.

Target's stock slipped just 67 cents, or 1 percent, to $62.67 in morning trading Friday.

The theft from Target's databases is still the second largest data breach on record, rivalling an incident uncovered in 2007 that saw more than 90 million credit card accounts pilfered from TJX Cos. Inc.

Target said in December that customers' names, credit and debit card numbers, card expiration dates, debit-card PINs and the embedded code on the magnetic strip on the back of cards had been stolen.

The company said late last month that it has been working with the Secret Service and the Department of Justice on an investigation into the breach.

The company said customers won't be liable for the cost of any fraudulent charges that stemmed from the breach.

Target said it will try to contact customers it has email addresses for to provide tips on how to safeguard against consumer scams. The company won't ask customers for any personal information during its email communications.

It's also offering a year of free credit monitoring and identity theft protection to customers that shopped at its stores. Individuals will have three months to enroll in the program. Target said it will provide more details on the program next week.

To woo scared shoppers back to stores on the last weekend before Christmas, Target offered a 10 percent discount on nearly everything. But Customer Growth Partners LLC, a retail consultancy, estimated that the number of transactions at Target fell 3 percent to 4 percent on the Saturday before Christmas, compared with a year ago.

"You have violated that person's trust. And it's going to take time to regain that trust," said Brian Sozzi, CEO & Chief Equities Strategist of Belus Capital Advisors.

Target lowered its fourth-quarter adjusted earnings guidance to a range of $1.20 to $1.30 per share, down from $1.50 to $1.60 per share.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect earnings of $1.24 per share.

The Minneapolis company also said that it now foresees fourth-quarter sales at stores open at least a year will be down about 2.5 percent. It previously predicted those sales would be about flat.

This figure is a closely-watched indicator of a retailer's health.

Target cautioned that its fourth-quarter financials may include charges related to the data breach. The chain said the costs tied to the breach may have a material adverse effect on its quarterly results as well as future periods.

The company has 1,921 stores, with 1,797 locations in the U.S. and 124 in Canada.

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Schilling lawyer says documents contradict charges

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — New documents directly contradict the allegations against former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling in a lawsuit that Rhode Island's economic development agency filed over the collapse of his video game company, his lawyer said Friday.

Speaking after a brief hearing in the case in Superior Court, Sarah Heaton Concannon said that documents she recently received "contradict the allegations of the complaint" and show they're baseless. The documents had previously been withheld because lawyers for the Economic Development Corp. maintained they were privileged.

The EDC, which has been renamed the Rhode Island Commerce Corp., agreed in 2010 to back a $75 million loan for Schilling's startup, 38 Studios, but the company ran out of money last year and filed for bankruptcy. Rhode Island is now responsible for some $90 million related to the transaction; the suit is an attempt to recover some of what the state stands to lose.

Concannon did not say what the documents contain and has maintained all along the charges are baseless. Schilling has called the lawsuit political.

The EDC's lead attorney on the case, Max Wistow, was not in court and was not immediately available to comment.

Schilling is among 14 defendants named in the suit, which alleges fraud, misrepresentation and breach of fiduciary duty, among other things. It says the defendants misled the EDC board into approving the deal.

In court Friday, William Dolan, an attorney for defendant Robert Stolzman, a former lawyer for the EDC, told the judge there are still "substantial disputes" over documents being withheld on the grounds of privilege.

Another attorney for the EDC, Stephen Sheehan, said the plaintiff's lawyers submitted a log of documents about a year ago that it believes it has the right to withhold and that the defendants have had plenty of time to raise objections.

Sheehan said he expects his side's depositions to be done in April. Among those who have been deposed are former EDC Executive Director Keith Stokes and Deputy Executive Director Michael Saul, who each provided out-of-court testimony over two days.

Schilling's deposition has not been scheduled. Sheehan said Friday he did not know when it would take place.

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