December 28, 2004 9:30 PM EST

SAN JOSE, Calif. - PeopleSoft Inc. founder David A. Duffield, who returned as chief executive during the company`s losing battle to escape Oracle Corp.`s takeover, has quit the software maker weeks before the deal closes, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday.

Duffield resigned as CEO, chairman and director on Dec. 21, according to the brief document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He had been chief executive since October, when the board unexpectedly fired then-CEO Craig Conway.

Earlier this month, PeopleSoft ended the 18-month saga by agreeing to Oracle`s sweetened terms. The $10.3 billion deal, which will create the world`s No. 2 business applications software maker after Germany`s SAP AG, is expected to close early next month.

It`s not immediately clear whether an interim chief executive will be appointed to run the company before Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle officially takes over. Steve Swasey, a PeopleSoft spokesman, declined to elaborate beyond the filing.

Oracle spokeswoman Deborah Lilienthal also declined to comment.

It`s not surprising that PeopleSoft executives who publicly battled Oracle in courtrooms and in the media might not find jobs at Oracle. But Conway`s firing and Duffield`s return as CEO in October was seen as a sign PeopleSoft`s board was willing to consider an Oracle takeover.

The fate of PeopleSoft`s 12,000 employees also remains unclear after the merger.

Duffield served as chairman of Pleasanton, Calif.-based PeopleSoft since its incorporation in 1987. He was also its chief executive from August 1987 through September 1999 before returning to the position in 2004.

Shares of PeopleSoft closed at $26.40, down 4 cents, in Tuesday trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. They rose 6 cents in the extended session. Shares of Oracle gained 19 cents, to close at $13.84, in regular Nasdaq trading, before adding 2 cents in the extended session.

Hmmm.........