Liberty Tax ended 2017 facing a growing list of court actions, The most recent is a class action suit against the tax services chain, which alleges management issues have cut share prices and hurt investors.

Thomson Reuters' home page prominently displays the words "Are You Ready for blockchain?" And that is just one of the signs that the company is betting heavily on a technology that much of the market is just beginning to understand.

Liberty Tax appears to be a business in turmoil. The resignation of KMPG as auditor brought into focus issues that led to the September 5 firing of founder and CEO John Hewitt. Area news reports say Hewitt was dumped following an investigation of employee complaints—including the human resource director—the CEO was heard having sex in his office and favored employees he was involved with.