WASHINGTON, Feb. 25, 2002(PRIMEZONE) -- The Law Office of Mark McNair announces a complaint alleging violations of federal securities laws by Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) has been filed on behalf of purchasers of WMB notes in or traceable to the company's January 7, 2002 offering. These notes were convertible into common stock and known as FELINE PACS (OTCBB:WMB). This lawsuit focuses solely on the January 7 offering.
This lawsuit is on behalf of all shareholders who purchased FELINE PACS (OTCBB:WMB). Thus, it is not necessary for such shareholders to take any action at this time unless they wish to be the Lead Plaintiff. The deadline for those investors who wish to file a Lead Plaintiff Motion is April 1, 2002. As noted above, this lawsuit is different than most class action lawsuits that have been filed against Williams Companies because it focuses solely on the January 7 offering.
Congress adopted the Lead Plaintiff provision in 1995 so that judges would put investors with large losses in control of the litigation. Since then, an increasing number of investors with significant losses are stepping forward to become the Lead Plaintiffs and the average size of settlements grown significantly. To serve as Lead Plaintiff, you must meet certain legal requirements.
The Law Office of Mark McNair recognizes that many investors with significant losses are uncertain about the class action process. Generally, such investors have never participated in a class action case and they are unclear whether they should take an active role in a case. The Law Office of Mark McNair specializes in working with such individuals and institutions and would be happy to review this process with you.
The complaint alleges that documents filed by Williams Companies in connection with its offering failed to adequately disclose more than $2.4 billion in credit, support and lease obligations that WMB had at the time of the offering. This inadequate and misleading disclosure did not last long. Three weeks after the offering WMB announced that it was delaying the release of its fiscal 2001 financial results to account for the $2.4 billion obligation, which included $250 million in costs that were not even mentioned in the offering documents. The disclosure stunned investors and WMB stock prices dropped precipitously and so did the value of its FELINE PACS, which were tied to the price of that stock.
To review the complaint and/or sign up online: http://www.justice4investors.com .
If you have any questions, please contact Mark McNair at 1101 30th Street PN.W. Suite 500, Washington, D.C, 20007 by telephone at (877) 511.4717 or (202) 872.4717, via e-mail at mcnair@justice4investors.com or visit our website www.justice4investors.com .
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca