Thorp Reed & Armstrong Secures Dismissal of Class Action Suit on Behalf of Italian Law Firm Pavia e Ansaldo in Parmalat Case

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, PA – August 20, 2008 – Thorp Reed & Armstrong, LLP today announced that the firm has successfully secured a dismissal for independent Italian law firm Pavia e Ansaldo (Pavia) in a major class action suit brought by the shareholders of Parmalat SpA. The suit was brought against a number of independent institutions, including Bank of America, Citigroup and Pavia, following the Italian dairy firm’s entering into bankruptcy, the largest in Europe’s history. Bank of America and Citigroup were dismissed along with Pavia.

The dismissal, handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, was issued on August 7th and made available to the public on August 11th.

The class action suit sought billions of dollars in damages and was brought on behalf of buyers of shares in Parmalat. Investors accused accounting firms, the banks, and Pavia, of willfully misleading them about the value of shares they purchased in Parmalat prior to the company’s collapse in 2003. The collapse of Parmalat has been referred to as the “Enron of Europe.”

The recent United States Supreme Court decision in Stoneridge vs. Scientific Atlanta provided the basis for the ruling and clarified that Pavia, and the banks involved in the suit, had no liability for the fraud alleged in the Parmalat case.

Joe Donley, the Thorp Reed & Armstrong partner who was lead counsel for Pavia in the case, commented, “The dismissal is extremely satisfying for all of us who worked on the case, but perhaps most importantly, it is an important moral, ethical and legal victory for Pavia e Ansaldo, a highly respected Italian law firm. The firm always maintained that it had no involvement in the Parmalat collapse and that it did not engage in any fraudulent or deceptive conduct, and the evidence showed that. We applaud the decision by Judge Kaplan and his recognition that the plaintiffs’ arguments were unfounded in this matter.”

Thorp Reed & Armstrong, well respected among its peers in the legal industry, has represented a number of law firms in high profile cases and transactions. The firm’s work on behalf of law firms has included representation involving fraud, malpractice, scheme liability, partnership structuring, breakups of firms, mergers and acquisitions, and employment concerns.

About Thorp Reed & Armstrong

Since 1895, Thorp Reed & Armstrong, LLP, has been a premier Pennsylvania-based law firm, which has grown to include additional offices in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Princeton, New Jersey, and Wheeling, West Virginia in addition to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Earning the respect, trust and appreciation of clients, peers, and those who live in our communities, Thorp Reed & Armstrong attorneys have gained a reputation as lawyers who exemplify the profession’s best qualities. The firm supports a wide variety of clients’ needs within the practice areas of business law, litigation, labor and commercial and public finance.

For more information on Thorp Reed & Armstrong, call 1-800-221-7029 or visit www.thorpreed.com
 

Author: Cynthia Tonet-Stewart
Firm: Thorp Reed & Armstrong, LLP

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