SEATTLE, Nov. 13, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Keller Rohrback L.L.P. announces a proposed $219 million settlement of litigation involving investments in Bernard L. Madoff ("Madoff") by and through Ivy Asset Management and J.P. Jeanneret Associates, among others. Preliminary approval of the settlement will be sought in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Keller Rohrback and its co-counsel, Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson P.C., filed an individual, direct action titled Hartman, et al., v. Ivy Asset Management L.L.C., et al., No. 09-8278 (S.D.N.Y.) on behalf of the trustees of 17 employee benefit plans in New York State. The action alleged that Ivy Asset Management and J.P. Jeanneret Associates, as well as certain individuals at those firms, breached their fiduciary duties in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended ("ERISA") by causing the Plans to be invested directly and/or indirectly in Madoff.
The proposed settlement will culminate several lawsuits brought by settling plaintiffs, including the United States Secretary of Labor and the New York Attorney General, against the settling defendants. Pursuant to the terms of the proposed settlement, the parties in these actions have agreed to a settlement amount of $219,857,694, plus any interest that may accrue thereon.
"This proposed settlement sends a strong message to fiduciaries of ERISA-protected plans that they will be held accountable if they fail to fulfill their obligations to plan participants," said Lynn Lincoln Sarko, the managing partner at Keller Rohrback. "Employee benefit plans should be aware that remedies are available to them."
For more information regarding the settlement, please contact attorney Lynn Sarko at 800.776.6044 or investor@kellerrohrback.com.
Keller Rohrback is one of America's leading law firms handling ERISA plan litigation. We are committed to helping employees and retirees protect their retirement savings. Keller Rohrback serves as lead and co-lead counsel in numerous ERISA class action cases and has successfully provided class action representation for over a decade. Keller Rohrback's trial lawyers have obtained judgments and settlements on behalf of clients in excess of seven billion dollars.