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Q. What are my rights as an investor
who has lost money due to corporate fraud?
A. Federal securities laws
prohibit fraud in connection with the sale of stock.
Investors who suffer damages as a result of fraud may
file suit against all individuals or entities responsible
for committing the fraud.
Q. How do I recover my loss?
A. If you lost money as
a result of a fraud and a class action is successfully
prosecuted on your behalf, you may be able to recover
some or all of the loss that you suffered. At the successful
conclusion of the class action you will be notified
that you may submit a "proof of claim" and
recover your share of whatever amount is available for
distribution to the class.
Q. Do I want or need to be a class
representative?
A. You are not required
to participate as a class representative. You may wish
to participate, however, since your participation will
aid efforts to recover losses suffered by the class.
Q. Will I need to pay anything
out of my pocket to retain counsel in a class action?
A. No. Class counsel provides
legal services on a contingent fee basis. That means
they advance the expenses to prosecute each case and
do not get paid unless they are successful in achieving
a recovery on behalf of the class.
Q. How do the attorneys get paid?
A. If the case is concluded
successfully, the attorneys will apply to the court
for an award of attorneys' fees and reimbursement of
their expenses. It is entirely up to the court to decide
how much the lawyers get paid.
Q. What risk is there for me?
A. The case may be unsuccessful.
You may not recover your loss. Otherwise, there is no
risk to you.
Q. What is the "class period?"
A. The "class period"
is a window of time during which the fraud caused damages
to shareholders. If you acquired stock in the defendant's
company during the "class period," you are
entitled to join the lawsuit and to share in any award
or settlement.
Q. Do I have to keep my stock
in order to participate in the case?
A. No. You may either hold
your stock or dispose of it as you wish. It has no impact
on your claim.
Q. How does my participation in
the action help the case or me?
A. Your participation helps
by making a clear statement to the court and to the
wrongdoers that this case is brought on behalf of more
than just one or two investors. Your participation makes
it clear that many investors are angry about the fraud
and are serious about prosecuting their claims. It also
helps to demonstrate to the court that the case should
proceed as a class action rather than an individual
action. This saves a great deal of time and effort and
moves the case forward to a determination on the merits
rather than procedural fighting about whether class
should be certified.
Q. Won't I be hurting myself as
a shareholder of a company if I then join a lawsuit
against the company I own stock in?
A. No. Your participation
helps to rid the company of the cloud of fraud and move
on to its business.
Q. Why should your firm represent
me?
A.
LeBlanc & Waddell has been actively engaged in Securities
Fraud Litigation. L&W represents over twenty public
and private pension funds in Securities Fraud matters.
These funds include Louisiana State Employees Retirement
System (LASERS) with assets of over $8 billion dollars,
Louisiana School Employees Retirement System (LSRS)
with assets of over $1.2 billion, Municipal Police Employees'
Retirement System (MPERS) with assets over $1.3 billion
and twenty additional private and public pension funds.
L&W was selected by the Attorney General of the
State of Louisiana and the Treasurer of the State of
Louisiana as Securities Fraud Counsel for the LEQTF
Fund.
Our Securities Litigation Section devotes its full time
and energy to pursuing Securities Fraud cases.
Q. Some class action lawsuits
are criticized as being without merit. How do I know
this isn't a frivolous suit that will cause needless
expense to the company?
A. Before we file any class
action, we conduct a thorough investigation of the facts
supporting a charge of fraud. We are very selective
and only file cases that appear to involve clear corporate
wrongdoing.
Q. Do I need proof of my purchases?
And if I do, what can I use as that proof?
A. The best proof is your
confirmation slips you received when you first purchased
your stock. You may also use your brokerage statements
indicating the date you purchased the stock and the
amount you paid for it.
Q. How much of my loss can I expect
to recover in a class action?
A. It is impossible to tell
at the outset how much you will recover. Historically,
we have recovered anywhere from 10% to 100% of the losses
suffered by the investors.
Q. When will I get my money?
A. At the successful conclusion
of the case and after notice is given to the class members
and proofs of claim are submitted and processed.
Q. How long do these cases take?
A. Typically, they can take anywhere from one to several
years.
Q. Can I sue my stockbroker as
well for advising me on this purchase?
A. In most securities fraud
class actions, we have found that the brokers were simply
passing along information to their clients that they
had received from the company and its spokespersons.
In that sense, your broker may have been victimized
in the same way as the other members of the class.
Q. Am I entitled to recover 100%
of my losses?
A. No, you are entitled
to recover your damages, which may not be the same as
your losses. Depending upon how successful we are, you
will share on a pro-rata basis in the recovery.
Q. Whom should I contact if I
have any more questions?
A. Please feel free to contact
us at any time and one of our attorneys will be happy
to discuss any questions you may have at no charge to
you.
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