A Manhattan personal assistant fatally bludgeoned her boss, the well-connected real-estate agent Linda Stein, in the woman's opulent Fifth Avenue apartment because Ms. Stein "just kept yelling at her," a law enforcement official said today. The assistant was arrested this morning.

Robert Toll, the chief executive of Toll Brothers, a luxury home builder, is blaming the New York Times for its declining numbers. The company's sales fell 36 percent this quarter, and 39 percent of customers backed out of their home orders.

"In the more serious cases, I'd expect agents to bring lawyers butit will be up to the new tribunalto determine if a complainantshould be represented by a lawyer. There may be a threshold set."

Peter Thompson, director of Auckland's largest agent, Barfoot & Thompson, said the new compensation provisions of the proposed law would raise the stakes for both sides. via The New Zealand Herald

Citigroup Inc on Tuesday named Richard Stuckey, who helped stabilize the Long-Term Capital Management LP hedge fund, to fix a troubled subprime mortgage portfolio expected to cause a fourth-quarter loss...