PHILADELPHIA, June 14, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- On May 3, 2002, the law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. (http://www.bergermontague.com) filed a class action suit against Dynegy ("Dynegy" or the "Company") (NYSE:DYN) and certain of its principal officers and directors in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased publicly traded securities of Dynegy between April 17, 2001 and April 24, 2002 the ("Class Period").
The complaint charges Dynegy and certain of its officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The complaint alleges that Dynegy and its top officers inflated the price of the Company's stock in order to sell almost $500 million in stock to the investing public. Defendants knew that concealing Dynegy's true vehicle, Project Alpha, for creating cash flow from operations and the true impact it would have on the Company provided the only way that they could foster the perception in the business community that Dynegy was not "Enron Corp.," i.e., the only way Dynegy could post the revenue and earnings per share growth claimed by defendants.
Prior to the Class Period, the Individual Defendants realized that many of their complicated deals to generate reported net income did not generate cash flow. The defendants knew that investors would eventually discover this discrepancy and the Company's stock price would collapse. To prevent this, Dynegy classified what was essentially a loan from CitiGroup Inc. as an operating activity rather than as a financing activity as required by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. The defendants' wrongful course of business (i) artificially inflated the price of Dynegy's stock during the Class Period; (ii) deceived the investing public, including plaintiff and other Class members, into acquiring Dynegy's securities at artificially inflated prices; (iii) allowed the Individual Defendants to extract millions of dollars in bonuses for creating the appearance of the Company's phenomenal cash flow from operations growth; and (iv) allowed Dynegy to sell nearly half a billion dollars of its own securities to the unsuspecting public.
If you purchased Dynegy securities during the period from April 17, 2001 through April 24, 2002, inclusive, you may, no later than June 25, 2002, move to be appointed as a Lead Plaintiff. A Lead Plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 directs Courts to assume that the class member(s) with the "largest financial interest'' in the outcome of the case will best serve the class in this capacity. Courts have discretion in determining which class member(s) have the "largest financial interest,'' and have appointed Lead Plaintiffs with substantial losses in both absolute terms and as a percentage of their net worth. If you have sustained substantial losses in Dynegy securities during the Class Period, please contact Berger & Montague, P.C. at investorprotect@bm.net for a more thorough explanation of the Lead Plaintiff selection process.
The law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. has over 50 attorneys, all of whom represent plaintiffs in complex litigation. The Berger firm has extensive experience representing plaintiffs in class action securities litigation and has played lead roles in major cases over the past 25 years which have resulted in recoveries of several billion dollars to investors. The firm is currently representing investors as lead counsel in actions against Rite Aid, Sotheby's, Waste Management, Inc., Sunbeam, Boston Chicken and IKON Office Solutions, Inc. The standing of Berger & Montague, P.C. in successfully conducting major securities and antitrust litigation has been recognized by numerous courts. For example:
"Class counsel did a remarkable job in representing the class
interests." In Re: IKON Offices Solutions Securities Litigation.
Civil Action No. 98-4286(E.D.Pa.) (partial settlement for
$111 million approved May, 2000).
"...(Y)ou have acted the way lawyers at their best ought to act.
And I have had a lot of cases...in 15 years now as a judge and I
cannot recall a significant case where I felt people were better
represented than they are here ... I would say this has been the
best representation that I have seen." In Re: Waste Management,
Inc. Securities Litigation, Civil Action No. 97-C 7709 (N.D.
Ill.) (settled in 1999 for $220 million).
If you purchased Dynegy securities during the Class Period, please visit our website at www.bergermontague.com to view the complaint and join the class action or if you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights with respect to this matter, please contact:
Sherrie R. Savett, Esquire
Stuart J. Guber, Esquire
Kimberly A. Walker, Investor Relations Manager
Berger & Montague, P.C.
1622 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 888-891-2289 or 215-875-3000
Fax: 215-875-5715
Website: http://www.bergermontague.com
e-mail: InvestorProtect@bm.net
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca