I have a question about making a claim regarding a securities litigation class action lawsuit.?

[said99]

So I received a notice in the mail about a company I own some stock in. I am glad there was a class action lawsuit against the company, because I believe the company made some material misstatements about their business operations which, if I had known, I definitely would not have bought shares in the company.

The notice I received claims I need proof of purchase of shares of the company (I have that) and also either of the following:

* proof of sale of shares
* proof of ownership of shares at a specific date

I did not sell my shares in this company, though certainly I am wishing I had at a certain point in time. I seem to have misplaced some of my brokerage account statements. Must I provide a copy of my brokerage statement from the specified period in the class action lawsuit (February 23, 2009), or would a current brokerage statement suffice? How specific do I need to be with this documentation?

Any help woiuld be greatly appreciated.

[nann]

It should be sufficient to provide a trade confirmation for your purchase and a current (or older as appropriate) account statement.

I've had a number of these arise in 30+ years of investing. Only one produced cash. In most cases, the lawyers get cash to settle while the plaintiffs get "disclosure", vouchers, or coupons.

If there was material illegal behavior, it is worth filling out the forms. Just don't expect a significant payout.

[wynn]

Wait until the lawsuit is settled.

If the lawsuit is unsuccessful, you haven't wasted your time on anything.

It it's successful, you will get a notice of what you need to do to claim the benefits. At that point, you will need to find the right statements.

Unfortunately, most of these class action lawsuits result in good money for the lawyers, and very little for the investors.