Former U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy stood on the floor of Congress in the wake of the stunning collapse of Enron Corp. and Worldcom Inc. and said he aimed to put an end to golden parachutes for CEOs who ran their companies aground.

Kennedy said in successfully pressing for a change in bankruptcy law that the amendment was “designed to stop the travesty of high-level corporate insiders who walk away with millions while the company’s workers and retirees are left empty-handed.”