BALA CYNWYD, Pa., April 4, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The following statement was issued today by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP:
A securities class action lawsuit pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania claims that Adelphia Communications Corporation ("Adelphia" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:ADLAC) misled shareholders about its business and financial condition.
Plaintiff seeks damages for violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 on behalf of all investors who bought Adelphia Communications Corporation securities between March 30, 2000 and April 1, 2002 (the "Class Period").
Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP has prosecuted shareholder class actions for over fourteen years and has recovered more than $1 billion for investors. If you are a shareholder of Adelphia Communications Corporation and want to learn more about this lawsuit and about becoming a lead plaintiff, you may visit our website at http://www.sbclasslaw.com/cgi/signup.cgi.
The complaint charges Adelphia Communications Corporation and certain of its officers and directors with issuing false and misleading statements concerning its business and financial condition. Specifically, the complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Adelphia failed to disclose billions of dollars of off-balance sheet debt. As alleged in the complaint, unbeknownst to investors, Adelphia guaranteed credit facilities for certain closely-held partnerships, which are controlled by the Rigas Family (the Company's controlling shareholder), and which used the money, in substantial part, to purchase securities from Adelphia. Defendants first disclosed the existence of the off-balance sheet debt during an earnings conference call on March 27, 2002. Then, on April 1, 2002, Adelphia announced that it was requesting an extension to file its Annual Report on Form 10-K with the SEC. The Company reported that the extension was being sought to allow the Company and its outside auditors additional time to review certain accounting matters relating to co-borrowing credit facilities which Adelphia is a party. In response to these negative announcements, the price of Adelphia common stock dropped from $20.39 per share on March 26, 2002, to $13.12 per share on April 1, 2002. The price of other Adelphia debt securities also materially declined.
If you purchased Adelphia Communications Corporation securities between March 30, 2000 and April 1, 2002 , you may be a member of the class and have until June 3, 2002 to move the court to become a lead plaintiff. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. To be a member of the class, however, you do not need to take any action at this time. Should you decide to seek appointment as a lead plaintiff, you may retain Schiffrin & Barroway, or retain counsel of your choice.
To learn more about your rights and interests in this case and your ability to potentially recoup your losses, please contact Schiffrin & Barroway (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Stuart L. Berman, Esq.) directly at 888-299-7706 (toll free) or 610-822-2221, fax number 610-822-0002, e-mail at info@sbclasslaw.com or visit our website at www.sbclasslaw.com.