His salary and bonus was trimmed by $200,000 last year, but he was also awarded options worth $9.7 million.

At Cendant, Henry Silverman owned no actual shares in his company, although he was awarded numerous options to buy shares.

The bank's compensation committee awarded him $27.3 million in cash, $15.7 million in restricted stock and options to buy Goldman stock valued at $10.5 million.

In 2000, after pulling the company out of its financial nose dive, Mr. Jobs was awarded a corporate jet and options to purchase 10 million shares.

That's because most employees who were awarded options to buy stock last August at $74 a share will now be able to do so at $17.125.

In 2008 Irani was awarded options worth $392 million.

Chrysler awarded him options for 130,000 shares at $14.13 each and 45,000 shares at $11.75, which can be exercised at various dates in the future.

Mr. Nebb said that Take-Two had changed its grant policy and now awarded options only on the first day of each quarter.

Mr. Smith, 55, also was awarded options to buy 80,000 G.M. shares at a minimum price of $37.32 a share.

Such a case could help reshape laws molded from a 40-year-old case involving a Texas oil company that awarded options before a big discovery.