BALA CYNWYD, Pa., Sept. 27, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Shareholders of Aon Corporation ("Aon" or the "Company") (NYSE:AOC) who desire to serve as a lead plaintiff in a shareholder class action lawsuit now pending in federal court in Illinois (02C5775) must submit an application with the Court by October 7, 2002 according to the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP.
The lawsuit seeks damages for violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all investors who purchased Aon Corporation securities between May 4, 1999 and August 6, 2002 (the "Class Period").
Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP has prosecuted shareholder class actions for over fourteen years and has recovered more than $1 billion for investors. If you are a shareholder of Aon Corporation and want to learn more about this lawsuit and about becoming a lead plaintiff, you may visit our website at http://www.sbclasslaw.com/cgi/signup.cgi.
The complaint alleges that the Illinois-based Aon Corporation issued numerous statements and filed quarterly and annual reports with the SEC which described the Company's earnings and financial performance. The complaint alleges that these statements were materially false and misleading because they failed to disclose and/or misrepresented the following adverse facts, among others: (I) that the Company had materially overstated its net income by $27 million in 1999, by $24 million in 2000 and by $5 million in the first quarter of 2002; (ii) that the Company lacked adequate internal controls and was therefore unable to ascertain the true financial condition of the Company; and (iii) that as a result, the value of the Company's net income and financial results were materially overstated at all relevant times.
On August 7, 2002, before the market opened for trading, Aon shocked the market when it announced, among other things, that: (a) it had failed to meet analysts' expectations on its earnings for the second quarter by a wide margin; (b) because of the slumping financial markets, it had canceled a spinoff of its insurance underwriting businesses to shareholders; and ( c) the SEC had began an investigation of its accounting and was questioning several items in the Company's accounts, including the reporting of investment write-downs, the timing of some costs and a reinsurance recoverable item and the decision not to consolidate certain special purpose vehicles. Aon also stated that, if the SEC says it is necessary, it will have to restate its earnings for the past three years, and reduce its net income by $27 million in 1999, by $24 million in 2000 and by $5 million in the first quarter of 2002. Following this report, shares of Aon fell $6.43 per share to close at $14.77 per share, a one-day decline of 30.3%, on volume of more than 20 million shares traded, or more than twenty times the average daily volume.
If you purchased Aon Corporation securities between May 4, 1999 and August 6, 2002 , you may be a member of the class and have until October 7, 2002 to move the court to become a lead plaintiff. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. To be a member of the class, however, you do not need to take any action at this time. Should you decide to seek appointment as a lead plaintiff, you may retain Schiffrin & Barroway, or retain counsel of your choice.
To learn more about your rights and interests in this case and your ability to potentially recoup your losses, please contact Schiffrin & Barroway (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Stuart L. Berman, Esq.) directly at 888-299-7706 (toll free) or 610-822-2221, fax number 610-822-0002, e-mail at info@sbclasslaw.com or visit our website at www.sbclasslaw.com.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca.