BALA CYNWYD, Pa., May 17, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The following statement was issued today by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP:
Notice is hereby given that a class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all purchasers of the common stock of Light Management Group, Inc. (OTCBB:LMGR) ("LMG" or the "Company") common stock during the period between June 9, 1999 and November 20, 2001, inclusive (the "Class Period").
If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Stuart L. Berman, Esq.) toll free at 1-888-299-7706 or 1-610-667-7706, or via e-mail at info@sbclasslaw.com.
The complaint charges Light Management Group, Inc. and certain of its officers and directors with issuing false and misleading statements regarding LMG's quarterly and annual financial performance and filed reports confirming such performance with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Defendants misrepresented LMG's financial results, and failed to disclose weaknesses in its financial internal controls.
Specifically, the complaint alleges that, during the Class Period, financial results for fiscal 1999 were restated twice. Financial results for the first, second and third quarter of 2000 were each separately restated once. In addition, year-end results for fiscal 2000 were also restated. Independent Auditor Defendants, Slayton (auditor for fiscal 1999) and Feldman Sherb (auditor for fiscal 2000) falsely represented that year-end results had been presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") based upon an audit that was purportedly conducted in compliance with generally accepted auditing standards ("GAAS"). Defendants' misconduct included: (a) booking sales that later had to be reversed; (b) failing to account for escalating costs and non-salary based compensation; (c) misclassifying inventory as capital equipment; (d) failing to account for expenses incurred by LMG which were paid by related entities in the period incurred; (e) failing to book expenses due to the settlement of debt with related parties; and (f) substantially understating interest expenses.
Moreover, LMG falsely represented that it had received outside funding critical to the growth of the business when, in truth, LMG knew that the announced financing would not be forthcoming. LMG also deceptively represented that backlog orders for its outdoor media projection systems had increased by $20 million. In the two years following this statement, LMG's reported revenues never approached this level.
Defendants' wrongful course of conduct served to artificially inflate the price of LMG common stock during the Class Period. While the price was being artificially inflated by LMG's misrepresentations, Omega Financial (a financial services firm 38%-owned by defendant Simon) sold substantial amounts of LMG common stock. By the last day of the Class Period, the price of LMG common stock, which had traded for as much as $17.50 per share, had declined approximately 99% to $0.450 per share.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of class members and is represented by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP, which prosecutes class actions on behalf of investors and shareholders. For more information on Schiffrin & Barroway, or to sign-up to participate in this action online, please visit http://www.sbclasslaw.com/cgi/signup.cgi.
If you are a member of the class described above, you may, not later than July 1, 2002, move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff of the class, if you so choose. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca