BALTIMORE, June 11, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Law Offices Of Charles J. Piven, P.A. announces that a class action was commenced in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of purchasers of CorTS Trust II for Provident Financial Trust I (NYSE:KVN) (NYSE:UNM) UnumProvident Corporate-Backed Trust Securities ("CorTS") Certificates pursuant to an initial public offering on or about April 18, 2001 and/or in the aftermarket for CorTS through and including March 24, 2003 (the "Class Period").
The complaint entitled, Azzolini vs. CorTS Trust II for Provident Financial Trust I, et al. 03 cv 3257, was filed in the Southern District of New York on May 8, 2003.
The complaint charges CorTS Trust II for Provident Financial Trust I, UnumProvident, Salomon Smith Barney and certain UnumProvident officers with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and with violations of the Securities Act of 1933. UnumProvident Corporation is the parent holding company for a group of insurance and non-insurance companies that collectively operate throughout North America and in the United Kingdom, Japan and Argentina.
UnumProvident's principal operating subsidiaries are Unum Life Insurance Company of America, Provident Life and Accident Insurance Company, The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company (Paul Revere Life) and Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company (Colonial). UnumProvident, through its subsidiaries, is a provider of group and individual disability insurance. It also provides a complementary portfolio of other insurance products, including long-term care insurance, life insurance, employer- and employee-paid group benefits and related services.
According to the CorTS IPO prospectus, UnumProvident Corporation guaranteed the payment of distributions on the Underlying Capital Securities but only to the extent that the Underlying Issuer had funds legally and immediately available therefor. On April 18, 2001, the first day of the class period, the CorTS were issued pursuant to the Prospectus and Registration Statement and began to publicly trade. The trust consisted of a single class of certificates, which represented interests in the trust and the certificates would only be paid through the trust. Therefore, the CorTS would only be paid if UnumProvident paid the original trust.
During the Class Period, UnumProvident falsely reported financial results because it did not properly account for the long-term impairment of its investments. Moreover, the financial information was inflated due to UnumProvident's overzealous denial of legitimate claims of its insureds through, what one federal judge deemed "a comprehensive system for targeting and terminating expensive claims." The financial statements and related press releases by UnumProvident identified above contained statements that were materially false and misleading when made.
On March 24, 2003, UnumProvident issued a press release in which they stated their intentions to restate financial statements from previous years. This put the payments of the CorTS in jeopardy and caused the CorTS to lose almost 50% of their value.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of CorTS Trust II for Provident Financial Trust I. No class has yet been certified in the above action. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. If you are a member of the Class, you may move the court no later than August 8, 2003 to serve as a lead plaintiff for the Class. In order to serve as a lead plaintiff, you must meet certain legal requirements. To be a member of the class you need not take any action at this time, and you may retain counsel of your choice.
If you were a purchaser of shares of CorTS Trust II for Provident Financial Trust I certificates during the period indicated and want to discuss your legal rights, you may e-mail or call Law Offices Of Charles J. Piven, P.A. who will, without obligation or cost to you, attempt to answer your questions. Law Offices Of Charles J. Piven has been involved in securities litigation for over ten years. You may contact Law Offices Of Charles J. Piven, P.A. at The World Trade Center-Baltimore, 401 East Pratt Street, Suite 2525, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, by email at piven@pivenlaw.com or by calling 410/332-0030.