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RIM Says Investor Suit Is 'Without Merit'
Securities Class Action |
2011/05/30 13:40
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Research In Motion Ltd., maker of the BlackBerry smartphone, said Friday that allegations that the company misled investors about its financial state are "without merit."
Lawyers for shareholders of the company filed a lawsuit this week in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeking class action status. The suit claims that between Dec. 16, 2010 and April 28 RIM executives made false and misleading statements about the company's financial condition and business prospects. The suit, which was filed by Mary T. Stabile on behalf of anyone who bought the stock during that time frame, names RIM itself, Chief Financial Officer Brian Bidulka, and co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Michael Lazaridis as defendants.
The suit is the latest in a string of negatives for RIM. The company's BlackBerry smartphones are known for their security and reliability as email devices, but haven't kept up with Apple Inc.'s iPhones or phones that use Google Inc.'s Android software when it comes to running third-party applications. In addition to its sales struggles, the company released its first tablet, the BlackBerry PlayBook, to mixed reviews in April and had to recall about 1,000 of the devices in May due to defective operating software that could have made it impossible for users to set up the device. Most of the gadgets were recalled before being purchased by consumers.
The suit alleges that RIM "failed to inform investors that its aging product line and inability to introduce new products to the market was negatively impacting the company's business and margins." It also argues that RIM knew that BlackBerry shipments would decline and inventory would rise because of problems such as product delays and "lackluster" launches.
RIM's stock dropped 11 percent on March 25 after the company issued a lower-than-expected forecast for its fiscal first quarter. And On April 28 the stock dropped 14 percent when RIM slashed that quarterly forecast, saying it had been selling fewer and cheaper smartphones than it anticipated. Between Dec. 16 and April 29, the stock fell 17.8 percent overall.
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Judge: Texas foster care lawsuit can proceed
Court News |
2011/05/28 13:41
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A judge says she will allow a lawsuit challenging Texas' foster care system to proceed as a class action.
U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack said during a hearing Thursday that she will grant class certification for the suit initiated by the advocacy group Children's Rights.
The suit contends that the Texas system is unconstitutional and should be reformed. It was filed in March on behalf of nine children between the ages of nine and 16.
A spokesman for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott says the state will determine its next course of action when the judge issues a written order.
The suit is the 12th of its kind initiated by the New York-based advocacy group seeking to reform child welfare systems administered by state or municipal governments. |
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Stay away from energy drinks, doctors say
Opinions |
2011/05/28 13:40
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In a new report, a large group of American doctors urge kids and teens to avoid energy drinks and only consume sports drinks in limited amount.
The recommendations come in the wake of a national debate over energy drinks, which experts fear may have side effects.
"Children never need energy drinks," said Dr. Holly Benjamin, of the American Academy of Pediatrics, who worked on the new report. "They contain caffeine and other stimulant substances that aren't nutritional, so you don't need them."
And kids might be more vulnerable to the contents of energy drinks than grownups.
"If you drink them on a regular basis, it stresses the body," Benjamin told Reuters Health. "You don't really want to stress the body of a person that's growing."
For the new recommendations, published in the journal Pediatrics, researchers went through earlier studies and reports on both energy drinks and sports drinks, which don't contain any stimulants.
They note that energy drinks contain a jumble of ingredients -- including vitamins and herbal extracts -- with possible side effects that aren't always well understood.
While there aren't many documented cases of harm directly linked to the beverages, stimulants can disturb the heart's rhythm and may lead to seizures in very rare cases, Benjamin said.
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"The Death and Life of American Journalism"
Legal Marketing |
2011/05/27 13:41
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It is a frightening fact that, in a time of unprecedented advances in communication technology, the quality of that communication is in sharp decline.
Indeed in American Culture, quality journalism seems to be in crisis. Newspapers are closing, broadcast news rooms are being emptied of some of the brightest and most experienced reporters and public scrutiny of public business...particularly in the government...is absent at best and intentionally skewed at worst.
Robert McChesney brings his educated viewpoint to this crisis in the communications era. McChesney is the author of several books on media and politics, professor of communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, host of the weekly talk show, Media Matters, on WILL-AM radio, and cofounder of the media reform organization Free Press. Free Press Co Founder and journalist John Nichols is his collaborator on this important new book
Not only does "The Death and Life of American Journalism" Take a close look at the forces...some economic, some accidental and some deliberate...that have put the craft of the journalist in a state of crisis...but the book also details how the same social and technological forces that have endangered the craft can revitalize it...and revitalize America in the Process.
For additional information on Robert McChesney "The Death and Life of American Journalism" please visit http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Death-and-Life-of-American-Journalism |
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Drop in AIG shares dims odds of recouping bailout
Headline Legal News |
2011/05/26 08:43
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Investors got a chance this week to weigh in on the government's odds of recouping the full $182 billion bailout of American International Group Inc. The response so far: Don't count on it. AIG shares skidded as much as 7 percent Wednesday, a day after the U.S. government sold a chunk of its stake in AIG. The stock recovered some of its losses, closing down 4 percent to $28.28. But it still trails the $28.73 average price the government needs to break even on the bailout. By offering 200 million shares at $29 each, experts say, the government misread the market's appetite for AIG. After Wednesday's price swoon, they say, it might have to delay future offerings of AIG stock. And taxpayers might have to give up on breaking even. "Treasury clearly wants to get out, and at some point I think exiting is more important than hitting a target price," said Clifford Gallant, an analyst at KBW Inc. AIG received the biggest bailout during the financial crisis because it couldn't meet its financial obligations to the world's biggest banks. AIG sold the banks insurance-like contracts to cover losses on mortgage bonds. Once the housing bubble burst and the bonds lost value, AIG couldn't pay up. If AIG failed, officials said, the banks would follow. Since then, government and AIG officials have been working to settle AIG's obligations, sell business units and repay its bailout money. |
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Investment Fraud Litigation |
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Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a practice that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information, frequently resulting in losses, in violation of the securities laws. Securities Arbitration. Generally speaking, securities fraud consists of deceptive practices in the stock and commodity markets, and occurs when investors are enticed to part with their money based on untrue statements.
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