BFA represented lead plaintiff New Orleans Employees' Retirement System in this litigation, in which Plaintiffs alleged false and misleading statements relating to a significant corporate restructuring plan, earnings, profitability, and financial outlook. When Celestica ultimately disclosed the truth, its stock price dropped 50%, reducing market capitalization by $1.3 billion.
Notably, Joseph Fonti was successful in arguing before the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, securing an investor-oriented interpretation of the pleading standard for scienter. Joseph also successfully argued in favor of Plaintiffs' class certification and summary judgment motions before the District Court, securing the first lower court decision after Halliburton Co. v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc., 134 S. Ct. 2398 (2014) in favor of investors on the issue of class-wide reliance.
In April 2015, Plaintiffs filed a motion for preliminary approval of a proposed $30 million settlement resolving all claims against the company and officer defendants. The final approval hearing was held on July 28, 2015 and, later that day, the Court approved the $30 million settlement.
