Colson Hicks Eidson Settles Class Action Lawsuit on Behalf of Employee Shareholders and Other Shareholders of U.S. Sugar Corporation

CORAL GABLES, Fla.--(Business Wire)--
Attorney Lewis S. (Mike) Eidson, Senior Partner at the Coral Gables-based law
firm Colson Hicks Eidson, announced today that the Firm has successfully reached
a settlement for a total potential value of $15.9 million with the U.S. Sugar
Corporation on behalf of the employee shareholders and other shareholders of the
Clewiston, Florida-based company. U.S. Sugar is the country`s largest producer
of sugar cane and refined cane sugar and is one of Florida`s major producers of
oranges and orange juice products.

The class action lawsuit was filed in West Palm Beach Federal Court in January
2008 on behalf of 4,000 current and former U.S. Sugar employees including farm
field workers, union mill workers, administrative staff, and others who own or
owned a large percentage of the company`s shares through an Employee Stock
Ownership Plan (ESOP), and other shareholders including several Michigan-based
charities. The lawsuit alleged U.S. Sugar's Board of Directors failed to inform
shareholders of two lucrative buyout offers thus denying them a substantial
profit on their shares and undervalued the shares held by the ESOP.

A final approval hearing has been scheduled for January 4, 2010. The settlement
requires U.S. Sugar to pay $8.4 million to the employee shareholders and other
shareholders upon final approval, with the balance of $7.5 million to be paid
upon U.S. Sugar and the State of Florida successfully completing their deal
relating to the U.S. Sugar property, expected to be completed in 2010.

"We have been litigating this action very aggressively for almost two years and
are very pleased to have reached a settlement of all claims. We believe the
settlement is fair for the ESOP participants and shareholders of U.S. Sugar,"
said Plaintiffs` attorney Mike Eidson who filed the case along with his partners
Roberto Martínez and Curtis Miner. Eidson is a past president of the American
Association for Justice, the world`s largest trial lawyers` bar with 60,000
members worldwide.

Colson Hicks Eidson is a trial firm with more than 35 years of experience
handling local, national and international litigation. Partners at the firm have
had the distinction of holding the following offices: President of the
Association of Trial Lawyers of America; President of the International Academy
of Trial Lawyers; President of the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers; President
of the Dade County Bar Association; United States Attorney for the Southern
District of Florida; and, Chairman of the Florida Federal Judicial Nominating
Commission.

Eidson is best known for his work as the lead counsel in some of the largest
automobile recalls in U.S. history: the Ford Pinto, the Chrysler Minivan and
most recently, the Firestone/Ford tire tread separation. The outcomes of these
cases created higher safety standards in the automobile industry safeguarding
consumers across the globe. Martínez is a former United States Attorney for the
Southern District of Florida known for his work as a former federal prosecutor
and as counsel for plaintiffs in major commercial and tort litigation, including
the Brothers to the Rescue anti-terrorism litigation, the Eller Media bus
shelter electrocution case, and the Rafael Sanchez lawsuit against the
Government of Aruba. Miner is best known for his work as a former Assistant
United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida prosecuting major
political, police, and public corruption cases and for serving as lead counsel
to the Federal Receivership of the Mutual Benefits Corporation.

Kreps/De Maria
Sissy De Maria or Cindi Perantoni, 305-663-3543
sdemaria@krepspr.com
cperantoni@krepspr.com

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