National Class Action Attorneys

Representation for Securities and Consumer Fraud

Do You Have a Case?

Let our experienced class action attorneys determine whether you have a case. Speak with an experienced attorney who can get you the compensation you deserve. Your call is confidential.

KGG maintains an active class action litigation practice headed by firm partner, Gary S. Graifman. Gary is an accomplished class-action lawyer in securities and consumer fraud, and he has spent decades working in this area. In addition to class action law, Gary heads up our legal team for commercial litigation and employment law.

The Basics About Class Action Lawsuits

What is a Class Action?

A class action is a representative lawsuit in which one or many individuals who sustained damages in similar situations sue on behalf of themselves and all others who have been injured by the acts of the defendant(s) which are complained of in the suit. As a general rule, the key determining factor is that a common element (or elements) to the claim exists, which outweighs the individual differences among class members.

The benefit of bringing a class action is that when damages suffered by one individual or a group are too small to sue individually, acting on behalf of all others similarly situated may allow them to sue for an aggregate amount that makes the suit financially practical.

Do all potentially affected individuals have to join the class action lawsuit in order for it to be maintained?

No, not all individuals who might qualify as class members need to be named as plaintiffs or agree to the class representatives acting on behalf of the class for the suit to commence. Once a class has been certified by the court, any potential class members must be given notice of the pending suit and be given the opportunity to either join the class action or decline to be included.

How many people must initially join in order for a class action lawsuit to be filed?

A class action may be filed by even one person acting on behalf of the class members if that person’s claim is typical of other class members’ claims and he or she can adequately represent the class.

How are the legal fees and expenses paid?

In a class action, the disbursements and expenses are typically advanced by counsel, and the legal fees are paid on a contingency basis. Therefore, legal fees and expenses are paid only to counsel if counsel is successful in obtaining a judgment or a settlement fund. Even then, the fees and expense reimbursements must be approved by the court before counsel is entitled to payment or reimbursement.

What is a Class Action Lawsuit for Financial Fraud or Securities Fraud?

In certain cases, where an investor has purchased a stock or other security, and the stock or security value goes down because the company or its management has given a falsely positive picture of the company’s current or past finances, business prospects, expected business or financial results, the investor may have a claim against the company or its management. Because the loss to each investor may not be great enough to sue individually, one or more investors may bring a suit representing the interests of all similarly affected investors and file it as a class action. In a class action, the investor bringing the suit acts as a representative for all similar investors. This is not limited only to purchasers of a stock or security.

For example, in certain instances, the purchaser of a stock who bought before negative information was released may bring a class action on behalf of himself and all similarly situated sellers who were injured by the company’s withholding of the material negative information. Typically, such a suit is filed against the company, its board of directors, senior officers, and possibly its accountants or auditors.

Also, a stockholder may bring an action against the company’s board of directors if the board has engaged in inappropriate waste or mismanagement of the company’s assets, or otherwise breached fiduciary duty.

The securities practice seeks to recover for investors the sums they have lost as a result of substantial value loss in their investments. These include:

• Investors whose stock in a particular company or fund has lost value because of fraud, misrepresentation, or mismanagement;
• Limited partners whose partnership holdings have depreciated in value or who have not received the return promised;
• Shares of a company are being acquired at a great disadvantage to the shareholder.

What is a security?

A security is any financial investment or stock instrument that is sold to the public in quantifiable units. Securities which are typically involved in the class actions brought by KGG are corporate common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants, bonds, partnership units and the like.

What are some types of actions in which a Purchaser, Seller, or Holder of a Security may consider bringing a class action?

Some of the types of situations in which an investor may be entitled to file a class action to recoup his losses and those of other class members are:

• You have purchased a company’s stock, and the company has now restated its earnings for an accounting period that includes your purchase.
• You have purchased a company’s stock, and afterward, the company has released negative information that it should have disclosed when you bought the stock.
• You have purchased stock in a company, and negative news is revealed by another source that the company itself should have disclosed, but did not.
• You have purchased a company’s stock, and it is revealed that the company’s management is engaged in wrongful conduct that negatively affects the stock price or the company’s assets.
• You have sold a company’s stock, and positive news is revealed after your sale that should have been released before you sold the stock, increasing its value.
• You own the stock of a company, and the company’s management proposes in a proxy statement to accept an offer to sell a large block of stock to a third party at a price less than what the actual value should be for such a sale.
• You own the stock of a company in which management is agreeing to a third party’s offer to buy a large amount of stock or to merge the company, and certain members of management have negotiated to get something of value that the other shareholders are not receiving.

There may be other instances that merit consideration of a class action lawsuit. If you have a stock whose value has been drastically reduced, please contact our office to discuss the matter.

How are the legal fees and expenses paid in securities class actions?

Kantrowitz, Goldhamer, Graifman, Perlmutter & Carballo, P.C., specializes in bringing class actions on behalf of investors. Class actions we commence are brought on a contingency basis. Therefore, the firm is paid only if and when a settlement fund is obtained or a judgment is collected. Even then, the Court must pass on and approve all legal fees and expense reimbursement paid to counsel in a class action.

What is a Consumer Fraud Class Action Lawsuit?

When a consumer of a product or service has been defrauded by a misrepresentation that is uniformly made to other consumers about that product or service, that defrauded consumer may commence an action on behalf of all other consumers who were subjected to the fraud. In such an event, the consumer acts both on his own behalf and as a representative for the class of similarly situated consumers.

What are some types of actions in which a consumer might consider bringing a class action?

This type of case may arise if consumers of a particular bank or financial institution have been subjected to the same illegal or improper escrow procedures or to incorrect calculations of the interest rate or method of payment.

Additionally, such a case might arise if consumers have purchased a product based on a representation that turns out to be false. For example, if a juice company represents that the juice is made with 100% pure juice and this turns out to be false. Or if a product is guaranteed to be flame-retardant, but this turns out to be false.

The key factor is that there is some common element to the purchases, the procedure or the misrepresentations which outweigh the differences between the members of the class.

How are the legal fees paid for consumer fraud class actions?

Kantrowitz, Goldhamer, Graifman, Perlmutter & Carballo, P.C. bring such class actions on a contingency basis. Therefore, the firm is only paid upon producing a successful result, from the settlement fund or through judgment collection. Such a fee is first passed upon by the Court, which must approve all fees and expenses paid to counsel in a class action.

What class action cases has the firm been involved in?

KGG has been involved in prosecuting a number of national class action lawsuits. This list of pending or settled cases should give you an idea of how dedicated our firm is to this area of practice. One of our most highly publicized cases was a consumer class-action settlement with DaimlerChrysler.

How Can I Join a Class Action Lawsuit?

Contact the class action lawyers at KGG today if you would like us to use the same knowledge, skill, and dedication in relation to your matter. Our office locations include Rockland County and Bergen County, but we help affected clients nationally. Call us toll-free at (866) 971-0927, email us, or fill out the contact form on our website. Any messages left for us will be promptly returned, as we know your time is valuable.