NEW YORK, March 19, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Law Firm of Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP announced today that a class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri on behalf of all who purchased or otherwise acquired shares or ownership units of Lord Abbett & Co., American Funds, Federated Investors, Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Hartford Mutual Funds Inc., Putnam Investments Family of Mutual Funds, and Van Kampen Investments Family of Mutual Funds (collectively the "Mutual Funds"), during the period between January 25, 1999 and January 9, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period"). A copy of the complaint filed in this action is available from the Court, or can be viewed on the firm's website at http://www.cauleygeller.com/show_case.asp?ccode=227&pcode=10&pp=4.
The complaint charges Edward D. Jones & Co. L.P. ("Edward Jones"), John W. Bachmann, Douglas E. Hill, Michael R. Holmes, Richie L. Malone, Steven Novik, Darryl L. Pope, and Robert Virgil Jr. with violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. More specifically, the complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose and/or indicate, during the Class Period, that: (1) Edward Jones brokers entered into "revenue sharing" agreements with seven Mutual Fund companies; (2) Edward Jones exclusively trained its brokerage staff to sell the seven Mutual Funds that entered into "revenue sharing" agreements with Edward Jones; (3) Edward Jones discouraged its brokers from contacting and selling other mutual funds where no "revenue sharing" agreement had been made with Edward Jones; and (4) Edward Jones brokers and representatives received extra compensation when they sold any of the seven Mutual Funds to Class Members.
The full extent of defendants' fraudulent scheme was finally revealed on January 9, 2004, when The Wall Street Journal published an article that disclosed Edward Jones' scheme. More specifically, the article stated that when training its brokers in fund sales, Edward Jones gave them information almost exclusively about the seven "preferred" Mutual Funds. Bonuses for brokers depend in part on selling the preferred Mutual Funds, and Edward Jones generally discouraged contact between brokers and sales representatives from rival funds. But while revenue sharing and related incentives were familiar to industry insiders, Edward Jones did not tell customers about any of these arrangements.
If you bought shares or units of any of the Mutual Funds between January 25, 1999 and January 9, 2004, inclusive, and you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 23, 2004. If you are a member of this class, you can join this class action online at http://www.cauleygeller.com/template8.asp?pcode=6&pp=1. Any member of the purported class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through Cauley Geller or other counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.
Cauley Geller is a national law firm that represents investors and consumers in class action and corporate governance litigation. It is one of the country's premiere firms in the area of securities fraud, with in-house finance and forensic accounting specialists and extensive trial experience. Since its founding, Cauley Geller has recovered in excess of two billion dollars on behalf of aggrieved shareholders. The firm maintains offices in Boca Raton, Little Rock and New York.
If you have any questions about how you may be able to recover for your losses, or if you would like to consider serving as one of the lead plaintiffs in this lawsuit, you are encouraged to call or e-mail the Firm or visit the Firm's website at www.cauleygeller.com.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca