New York to sue Grasso

NEW YORK — New York’s attorney general will sue former New York Stock Exchange chairman and chief executive Richard Grasso and at least two of the former board members who approved his controversial $187.5 million compensation package, two sources told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The suit, which is expected to be filed early next week, will seek at least a partial return of Grasso’s pay, said sources close to the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity. It was not know what damages would be sought against the board members, though the suit will claim that they violated their fiduciary responsibilities to the nonprofit exchange. It also was not known which board members would be sued.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Eliot Spitzer had no official comment on the suit, which was first reported by CNBC. Spitzer’s office has been investigating Grasso and his pay since September, when the former chairman resigned from the NYSE amid criticism of the pay package.

Grasso spokesman Eric Starkman had no comment on the matter.