Former Apple lawyer goes under SEC investigation

San Jose (CA) - The former general counsel for Apple is now under legal scrutiny, after prosecutors brought her into the stock fraud scandal that broke several months ago.

Nancy Heinen is accused of helping Apple backdate stock options and covering it up. Her lawyer, Cris Arguedas, said she expects the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) "to file against our client and we will be defending those charges because they are a misunderstanding of the activities of Apple," according to the Associated Press.

The alleged backdating involves a grant of 7.5 million shares of Apple to CEO Steve Jobs, which was changed in the records from October 2001 to December 18, 2001. There’s also another instance that involved Heinen, among other top level executives.

Heinen stepped down in May 2006, before the fraud allegations became widely reported. Her lawyer argues that it’s not a backdating case, and that all actions were in compliance with SEC regulations at the time.