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In re Gemstar TV Guide International, Inc.
Securities Litigation
(United States District Court for the
Central District of California)
Securities fraud class action pending against
Gemstar-TV Guide International, Inc. ("Gemstar") alleging
that, between June 1, 2000 and April 1, 2002, Gemstar and its
top officers engaged in a fraudulent scheme to misstate the company's
revenues, assets and financial results in SEC filings and press
releases, thus artificially inflating stock prices. After Gemstar
disclosed some of its improper revenue recognition practices
on April 1, 2002, the price of its stock dropped 37% to close
at $9.01 per share.
The Court appointed BLB&G clients the
Teachers'
Retirement System of Louisiana and the
General Retirement System of the City of Detroit as Lead Plaintiffs
in the action and also appointed BLB&G as Lead Counsel for
the class. Lead Plaintiffs filed their
Second Amended Class Action Complaint on October 10, 2003, on behalf
of the class. Defendants filed their motions to dismiss the Second
Amended Complaint on November 24, 2003. The Court subsequently removed
the motions from the docket.
GEMSTAR AGREES TO SETTLE CLAIMS FOR $67.5 MILLION
On April 13, 2004, the parties entered into a Stipulation of Settlement (with Gemstar only)
of the action for $67.5 million in cash and stock. On September 13, 2004, the Court
approved the settlement with Gemstar. The Notice of Settlement and Proof of Claim forms are available below.
IN ORDER TO BE ELIGIBLE TO SHARE IN THE BENEFITS OF THE SETTLEMENT, CLASS MEMBERS MUST HAVE ALREADY SUBMITTED A
COMPLETED AND SIGNED PROOF OF CLAIM FORM POSTMARKED NO LATER THAN SEPTEMBER 23, 2004.
Click on the following links to view a copy of the:
Notice of Pendency and
Proposed Partial Settlement of Class Action (Gemstar)
Proof of Claim and
Release
KPMG AGREES TO SETTLE CLAIMS FOR $25 MILLION
On March 10, 2005, Lead Plaintiffs entered into a
Stipulation of Settlement with Gemstar's former auditors, KPMG LLP ("KPMG"), for $25
million in cash. On September 12, 2005, the Court approved the settlement with KPMG.
The Notice of Settlement and Proof of Claim forms are available below.
IN ORDER TO BE ELIGIBLE TO SHARE IN THE BENEFITS OF THE SETTLEMENT, CLASS MEMBERS MUST HAVE
ALREADY SUBMITTED A COMPLETED AND SIGNED PROOF OF CLAIM FORM POSTMARKED NO LATER THAN SEPTEMBER 23, 2005.
The Court granted Lead Plaintiffs' motion for approval of distribution of combined settlement proceeds on September 28, 2006.
Click on the following links to view a copy of the:
Notice of Pendency and
Proposed Partial Settlement of Class Action (KPMG)
Proof of Claim and
Release
Claims remained against two individual defendants.
In light of the substantial judgment and settlement against these
remaining defendants obtained by the Securities and Exchange Commission,
a substantial arbitration award recently awarded to Gemstar against
its former CEO, as wells as limits on resources available by these
defendants to contribute additional monies, the remaining parties
recently stipulated to dismissal of the claims against these two defendants without prejudice.
The case against the two individual
defendants was dismissed on March 1, 2007.
Background
The lead plaintiff selection process
in this action was hotly contested and the Court rendered a
far-reaching decision which clearly supports the appointment of
dedicated institutional investors, particularly public pension
funds as lead plaintiffs in securities class action litigation. In
its opinion, the Court praised the Louisiana Pension Fund's
sophistication and experience. "The fact that other courts have
allowed the Louisiana Pension Fund in particular to act as lead
plaintiff in more than five securities class actions demonstrates
that it is equipped to do so. Moreover, the Louisiana Pension
Fund's experience acting as lead plaintiff will benefit the
class." On November
8, 2002, the Court rejected a Motion For Reconsideration of her
Lead Plaintiff appointment filed by an aggregated group of plaintiffs,
retaining BLB&G as sole lead counsel on behalf of the Louisiana
Teachers and Detroit General pension
funds.
Firm partner Blair Nicholas
and Senior Counsel
Niki Mendoza are responsible for
prosecuting this action.
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