But few dismissal decisions, at least in my experience, castigate plaintiffs’ lawyers for trying to do just that – which is why a ruling on Wednesday from U.S. District Judge William Young caught my eye.
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Young concluded that none of the 25 allegedly false statements was actually false and that the complaint failed to show Biogen’s fraudulent intent.
But that’s not all. The complaint, he said, had repeatedly mischaracterized what Biogen executives actually said in order to make their statements seem misleading. This “constant misrepresentation,” Young said, was fatal.
“A securities fraud complaint cannot rest on a house of cards made of mischaracterized statements,” the judge wrote.
That’s more than a dismissal. It’s an accusation.
Source: Judge axes Biogen class action, rips shareholder lawyers for ‘constant misrepresentation’ | Reuters
