SEATTLE, April 20, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Please note that in the release sent yesterday, the Judge's name was misspelled. The complete, corrected release follows:
Keller Rohrback L.L.P. today announced that the Honorable Stanley R. Chesler of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (Trenton) yesterday appointed Keller Rohrback L.L.P. as one of four Co-Lead Counsels for the ERISA class action brought on behalf of the participants and beneficiaries in the Merck & Co., Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan, the Merck & Co., Inc. Employee Savings and Security Plan, the Medco 401(k) Plan, the Merck-Medco Managed Care 401(k) Savings Plan, and the Medco Health Solutions, Inc. 401(k) Savings Plan (the "Plans"), who held and/or purchased Merck & Co., Inc. ("Merck") (NYSE:MRK) stock in their Plan accounts between May 21, 1999 and the present (the "Class Period").
Judge Chesler appointed Keller Rohrback L.L.P., together with the law firms of Schatz & Nobel, P.S. (Chair), Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, P.L.L.C., and Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP to serve on a Co-Lead Counsel Committee, and appointed the law firm of Trujillo & Rodriguez as Liaison Counsel. The Court also appointed Lite DePalma Greenberg & Rivas, LLC, Lockridge Grindal Nauen P.L.L.P., Scott & Scott, and Johnson & Perkinson as members of a discovery committee for the ERISA plaintiffs.
Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants breached their ERISA fiduciary duties by imprudently permitting the Plans to hold and acquire hundreds of millions of dollars in Merck stock. They did so despite the fact that Defendants knew or should have known that Merck stock was not a suitable and appropriate investment for the Plans, in light of Merck's continued problems with regard to VIOXX and its poor performance in general.
If you are a participant or beneficiary of one of the above-mentioned Plans and would like more information regarding this case, please visit Keller Rohrback's website, http://erisafraud.com/merck, which is designed to keep class members updated on the case, or contact any of the Co-Lead Counsel firms. You may contact members of our team (paralegal Faye Farhang, or attorneys Lynn L. Sarko, Juli Farris Desper, or Erin Riley) toll free at (800) 776-6044, or via email at investor@kellerrohrback.com.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca