| Company: | El Paso Corporation |
| Ticker Symbol: | NYSE: EP |
| Class Period: | March 31, 2003 through February 17, 2004 |
| Court: | Southern District, TX |
| Date Filed: | Feb-27-04 |
| Lead Plaintiff Deadline: | Apr-19-04 |
| Allegations: |
A Federal Securities fraud class action on behalf of persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired the securities of El Paso Corporation (NYSE:EP) ("El Paso" or the
"Company") during the period from March 31, 2003 through and including February 17, 2004 (the "Class Period").
The action, entitled Copland v. El Paso Corp., et al, Case No. not yet assigned, is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas and names as defendants, the Company, its former chairman and chief executive officer Ronald L. Kuehn, Jr., its current president and chief executive officer, Douglas L. Foshee, and its executive vice president and chief financial officer, D. Dwight Scott.
The complaint charges defendants with violating Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, including U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Rule 10b-5, due to their materially misrepresenting El Paso's financial condition and thereby causing the company's stock to trade at artificially high prices during the Class Period . Specifically, it is alleged that El Paso reported strong proved global oil and natural gas reserves. Proved reserves are defined as those that can be extracted from known fields under existing economic and operating conditions and represent a key metric in assessing an oil company's future growth. All along, however, El Paso's seemingly strong financial prospects were the direct result of the defendants having artificially inflated the company's proved reserves and, correspondingly, its potential future revenue stream.
After the markets closed on February 17, 2004, El Paso shocked the investing public by announcing that an independent review of the company's proved oil and gas reserves revealed that, as of January 1, 2003, El Paso overstated such reserves by a staggering 41%, or 3.64 trillion cubic feet. The company further revealed that, as a direct result, it expects to take a pre-tax charge of approximately $1 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2004. On the heels of these revelations, El Paso's common stock fell 17.6% from a closing price of $8.81 on February 17, 2004 to a close of $7.26 on February 18, 2004.
If you acquired the securities of the defendants during the Class Period you may, no later than the Lead Plaintiff Deadline shown above, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff through counsel of your choice. You may also choose to remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff must meet certain requirements.
The action, entitled Copland v. El Paso Corp., et al, Case No. not yet assigned, is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas and names as defendants, the Company, its former chairman and chief executive officer Ronald L. Kuehn, Jr., its current president and chief executive officer, Douglas L. Foshee, and its executive vice president and chief financial officer, D. Dwight Scott.
The complaint charges defendants with violating Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, including U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Rule 10b-5, due to their materially misrepresenting El Paso's financial condition and thereby causing the company's stock to trade at artificially high prices during the Class Period . Specifically, it is alleged that El Paso reported strong proved global oil and natural gas reserves. Proved reserves are defined as those that can be extracted from known fields under existing economic and operating conditions and represent a key metric in assessing an oil company's future growth. All along, however, El Paso's seemingly strong financial prospects were the direct result of the defendants having artificially inflated the company's proved reserves and, correspondingly, its potential future revenue stream.
After the markets closed on February 17, 2004, El Paso shocked the investing public by announcing that an independent review of the company's proved oil and gas reserves revealed that, as of January 1, 2003, El Paso overstated such reserves by a staggering 41%, or 3.64 trillion cubic feet. The company further revealed that, as a direct result, it expects to take a pre-tax charge of approximately $1 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2004. On the heels of these revelations, El Paso's common stock fell 17.6% from a closing price of $8.81 on February 17, 2004 to a close of $7.26 on February 18, 2004.
If you acquired the securities of the defendants during the Class Period you may, no later than the Lead Plaintiff Deadline shown above, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff through counsel of your choice. You may also choose to remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff must meet certain requirements.
If you feel you qualify for damages or remedies that might be awarded in this class action please fill in our form on the right to submit your complaint.
If your injustice does not match the complaint described above, please use this form to register your complaint. Thank you.
