CHRONOLOGY: Key dates in Nortel's accounting scandal

TORONTO (Reuters) - Police laid fraud-related criminal charges against a number of former Nortel Networks Corp executives including former CEO Frank Dunn.

The charges relate to an accounting scandal that hit the telecom equipment maker in 2004 and led to numerous earnings restatements.

Here are some key dates in the scandal:

October 23, 2003 - Nortel reports a quarterly profit, but says it will restate results going back to 2000.

November 19 - The restatement reduces losses for the period between 2000 and mid-2003 by $505 million.

January 29, 2004 - Nortel posts its first annual profit since 1997 with net earnings of $732 million.

March 10 - Nortel says it will likely restate results for a second time and delay filing its 2003 annual report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

March 15 - Nortel puts its chief financial officer and controller on paid leave.

April 5 - The SEC launches a formal investigation.

April 13 - Canada's top securities regulator launches a separate investigation into Nortel's accounting.

April 28 - Nortel fires its top three executives, including chief executive Frank Dunn, "for cause" and names William Owens its new CEO.

May 14 - A U.S. grand jury subpoenas financial, corporate, and personnel records as part of a criminal investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Texas.

July 2 - A Wall Street Journal report says the company manipulated its books to show a profit in 2003, misusing accrued liabilities - which stem from charges for items such as merger costs or contractual liabilities - to boost earnings.

August 16 - Canada's Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirm they have begun a criminal investigation into the company's accounting, Nortel says.

October 15, 2007 - Nortel pays $35 million to settle civil charges filed by the SEC related to the scandal. The SEC has also charged Nortel's former management team with directing parts of the fraud.

June 19, 2008 - The RCMP files criminal fraud-related charges against Dunn and two of his onetime lieutenants, Douglas Beatty and Michael Gollogly. Dunn's lawyer insists his client acted "honestly and diligently."