When flailing giant Elan Corp. plc made known its plan to restructure at the end of last month, tremors were felt worldwide. The Securities and Exchange Commission had raised questions about off-balance-sheet accounting procedures related to Elan's joint ventures, of which the company has no less than 55, and there had been shareholder lawsuits along with the more ordinary kind of problems, such as the suspension of clinical dosing of the Alzheimer's drug partnered with Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories. (BioWorld Financial Watch)