Court Partially Closes Divorce Trial in the Interests of Justice

LOS ANGELES - The divorce trial of an executive with the Capital Group Cos., a firm with assets totaling more than $1 trillion, will be partially closed to the public, a judge ruled Monday. In its request, Los Angeles-based Capital Group cited a rarely used section of the California family code that says a courtroom can be closed to the public "in the interests of justice and the persons involved." The company's attorneys argued that certain information, such as executive pay levels, would damage the privately held company if revealed. Capital Group manages the American Fund group of mutual funds. The divorce trial of Timothy Armour, 45, and his wife, Nina Ritter began Monday. The company asked the judge to seal exhibits, transcripts and other materials so they won't become public during the trial.Source:  Associated Press, The Mercury News, MercuryNews.com. For the complete story, click here (last visited October 19, 2005, reo).