Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro Investigating Bear Stearns Stock on Behalf of
Employees
SEATTLE, March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP ("Hagens
Berman") (http://www.hbsslaw.com/bsc) today announced it is investigating
possible ERISA violations by the Bear Stearns Companies Inc. ("Bear Stearns"
or the "Company") (NYSE: BSC) relating to the Employees Stock Ownership Plan
("ESOP").
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080317/AQM144LOGO)
The investigation comes after JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced it is
purchasing Bear Sterns for $2 per share, 90 percent less than the 85-year-old
firm's market value last week. The investigation is looking into whether
fiduciaries of the Company's ESOP knew or should have known that Bear Stearns
concealed its exposure to risky collateralized debt obligations, sub-prime
mortgages and other poor-quality securities. If fiduciaries did not exhibit
due diligence in protecting the ESOP participant's investments in Company
stock and were aware of the extremely high-risk investments the company made,
plan fiduciaries could be found in violation of ERISA laws.
Concerning possible ERISA violations, Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro is
looking at whether or not Bear Stearns continued to offer and hold company
stock in the ESOP when it was no longer prudent to do so, and if the company
failed to take action to sell Bear Stearns stock or otherwise protect the
plan's assets in light of the company's risky business strategies and
deteriorating financial condition.
Bear Stearns is headquartered in New York and is a leading global
financial services firm serving governments, corporations and institutions
nationwide. Bear Stearns specializes in institutional equities, fixed income,
investment banking, asset management and more. In a company press release on
March 16, 2008, the company announced that JPMorgan would acquire Bear Stearns
and stocks could be transferred from Bear Stearns to JPMorgan based on the
closing numbers from March 15, 2008. Bear Stearns stock tumbled from
$30.00 per share on March 14 to $4.81 at closing on Monday, March 17, 2008.
If you have information concerning this investigation or if you have any
questions about the investigation, please contact plaintiff's counsel, Steve
Berman of Hagens Berman at 206/623-7292 or via e-mail at info@hbsslaw.com. You
can view additional materials on this investigation at
http://www.hbsslaw.com/bsc.
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, a law firm with offices in Seattle, San
Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago and Phoenix, is active in major
litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States
and has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of ERISA Plan
participants and other defrauded investors, consumers, and companies, as well
as victims of human rights violations. The firm was co-lead counsel in the
Enron ERISA litigation, which recovered more than $220 million on behalf of
former Enron employees who lost retirement savings in the Enron ESOP and
401(k) plans. The Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro Web site
(http://www.hbsslaw.com) has more information about the firm.
Contact: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
Steve Berman
206-623-7292
Steve@hbsslaw.com
http://www.hbsslaw.com
SOURCE Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
Steve Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, +1-206-623-7292,
Steve@hbsslaw.com
