A selection of key dates in the life of former media magnate Conrad Black:
Aug. 25, 1944: Conrad Moffat Black is born in Montreal.
1958: Black is expelled from Toronto’s Upper Canada College, allegedly for selling stolen exam papers.
1965: Black completes B.A. in history from Carleton University in Ottawa.
1966: Black purchases his first newspaper, the Eastern Townships Advertiser of Quebec.
1969: The Black family establishes the Ravelston Corporation, which would later become the holding company for Hollinger and other ventures.
1970: Black completes a law degree from Laval University in Montreal.
1971: Black, along with friends David Radler and Peter White, creates Sterling Newspapers Ltd., which eventually gained control of several small regional papers.
1973: Black completes a masters in history from McGill University in Montreal. His thesis on former Quebec premier Maurice Duplessis became his first political biography.
1976: Black’s father dies, leaving him and his brother a 22.4 per cent share in Ravelston Corp. Ravelston was a holding company for Argus Corp., which had controlling interests in seven major Canadian companies, including Domtar, Dominion Stores, Hollinger Mines and Standard Broadcasting.
July 14, 1978: Black marries Joanna Hishon of Montreal. The marriage lasts until 1991.
1978: Black acquires controlling interest in Ravelston, and by extension Argus and its associated companies, for $30 million.
1984: Controversy arises when Black withdrew $56 million from the pension plan belonging to Dominion without approval from plan members. The case made it to provincial court, which ruled the money had to be returned to the plan.
1985: Black invests in the U.K.’s Telegraph Group, eventually gaining a controlling interest. Argus sheds its resource assets and Black’s business focus shifts exclusively to the media.
1990: Black acquires the Jerusalem Post, making his company the owner of more than 400 newspapers around the world.
1992: Black acquires a 23 per cent stake in Southam Newspapers, which includes numerous daily papers across Canada.
July 21, 1992: Black marries Barbara Amiel.
Feb. 28, 1994: Black acquires the Chicago Sun Times.
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February 1996: Hollinger International goes public with a listing on the New York Stock Exchange, and the company increases its stake in Southam to a controlling interest.
Oct. 27, 1998: Hollinger launches the National Post.
2000: Hollinger sells half its share of the Post, 13 large Canadian papers and more than 120 community papers to Canwest Global Communications.
2001: Hollinger sells the rest of its stake in the National Post to Canwest.
Oct. 30, 2001: The Queen gives Black a peerage, making him a member of Britain’s House of Lords. In order to assume the title of Baron Black of Crossharbour, Black is forced to renounce his Canadian citizenship.
Nov. 17, 2003: Black announces he’ll resign as CEO of Hollinger International but remain as chairman of the company’s board. Hollinger International indicates it’s up for sale.
Nov. 19: U.S. and Canadian regulators disclose they are investigating Black and top executives on allegations they pocketed millions of dollars in unauthorized fees.
Jan. 16, 2004: Hollinger International launches US$200-million lawsuit against Hollinger Inc., the Toronto holding company through which Black controls the U.S.-based operating enterprise.
Nov. 15: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission files fraud charges against Black and longtime deputy David Radler.
March 18, 2005: Ontario Securities Commission launches proceedings against Black and allies over transactions including Hollinger’s $3.2-billion sale of Canadian newspapers to CanWest Global in 2000.
May 20: Black is captured by security cameras removing 13 boxes from the company’s headquarters in Toronto and loading them into a limousine, in defiance of a court order. He is later forced to return the boxes. Video from the incident becomes evidence in U.S. criminal trial in 2007.
Aug. 18: Radler, former Hollinger lawyer Mark Kipnis and Toronto-based Ravelston Corp. are indicted on five counts each of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud. They are accused of cheating shareholders in the United States and Canada, as well as Canadian tax authorities.
Sept. 20: Radler pleads guilty to one count of mail fraud and agrees to 29-month prison sentence and US$250,000 fine. He also agrees to testify against others.
Nov. 17: Black and former Hollinger directors John Boultbee and Peter Atkinson are charged with fraud. Black and Boultbee are charged with eight counts of mail and wire fraud; Atkinson with six. New charges are laid against Kipnis.
Dec. 1: Black and Atkinson plead not guilty to fraud charges. Black released on US$20-million bond; can only reside in Canada, Florida or Chicago.
Dec. 15: Prosecutors add racketeering and obstruction of justice allegations to Black’s charges.
Dec. 16: Black pleads not guilty to new charges.
March 18, 2007: The trial of Black and three other defendants begins.
July 13: Black found guilty of three counts of mail fraud and one count of obstruction of justice.
July 19: Black granted bail until his Nov. 30 sentencing hearing but told he can’t travel back to Canada.
Aug. 27: Black asks Chicago judge for a new trial or an acquittal, saying it ”would be a miscarriage of justice to let the verdict stand.”
Nov. 5: Judge dismisses Black’s bid for a new federal fraud trial.
Nov. 28: Ravelston fined US$7 million and ordered to pay US$6 million in restitution for its part in the fraud.
Dec. 10: Black sentenced to six and a half years in prison, fined US$125,000 and ordered to pay US$6.1 million in restitution.
March 3: Black reports to Coleman Federal Correctional Complex in Coleman, Fla. to begin serving sentence.
May 18, 2009: U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear appeal.
June 24, 2010: U.S. Supreme Court sets aside three mail fraud convictions, leaves ultimate resolution of the case to a lower appeals court.
July 21: Black released on $2-million bail.
Oct. 29: U.S. court overturns two fraud convictions but upholds a third count, plus a conviction for obstruction of justice.
Jan. 13, 2011: Prosecutors say Black won’t be retried on the dismissed fraud convictions. Resentencing scheduled for June 24.
Feb. 17: Black launches appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court to have his remaining fraud conviction, as well has his conviction for obstruction of justice, overturned.
May 31: U.S. Supreme Court rejects Black’s appeal.
June 24: St. Eve resentences Black to 42 months behind bars for his two remaining convictions. Crediting him with time served, she orders him to return to jail for eight months.
Sept. 6: Black returns to prison, this time Miami’s Federal Correctional Institution, to finish out his sentence.
May 1, 2012: Canadian authorities grant Black a one-year temporary resident permit, which would allow him to return to Canada despite the fact that he would not normally be criminally admissible for long-term residency in the country.
May 4: Black is released from prison in Miami.
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