No Ford in Their Future?

A Dutch court has ordered a review of a decision last year that allowed Pinault-Printemps-Redoute of France to acquire a controlling stake of the Gucci Group. Gucci had agreed to the Pinault deal to thwart a hostile bid by LVMH-Mo‘t Hennessy Louis Vuitton, which had earlier acquired a sizable share of the company. The deal, approved in 1999 by a lower Dutch court, reduced LVMH's stake in Gucci to about 20 percent and denied it a seat on the Gucci board. LVMH said the court's most recent decision opens the door for it to seek an annulment of the Pinault deal and a full investigation of Gucci's handling of both companies'takeover attempts. Gucci operates out of Italy, but is based in the Netherlands for tax purposes.