Download Related Documents
|
YUKOS ADR Holder Suit Against Russian Government, Kremlin Officials Progresses
- Russian Federation Served with Complaint, must respond by May 15 or risk default judgment
- Ministers Khristenko and Kudrin and Other Defendants Appoint U.S. Defense Lawyers
- More US Investors Seek to Become Plaintiffs
The precedent-setting lawsuit by holders of YUKOS American Depository Receipts ("ADRs") filed on 24 October 2005 on behalf of investors who purchased YUKOS ADRs prior to January 2005 is progressing in the US Federal Court system.
The precedent-setting lawsuit by holders of YUKOS American Depository Receipts (“ADRs”) originally filed in October 2005 on behalf of investors who purchased YUKOS ADRs prior to January 2005, was updated by an Amended Complaint, filed on July 13, 2006. Additional facts were added to the complaint and 31 new plaintiffs joined the effort to seek redress against the Russian government for its effective re-nationalization of YUKOS.
Also on July 13, 2006, attorneys for the plaintiffs announced that a Netherlands court has allowed them to attach Rosneft's shares in West Kamchatka Holding BV.
The 31 new plaintiffs bring to 43 the number of investors that have brought claims against the Russian Federation, Russian state-controlled companies (including Gazprom, Gazpromneft, Rosneft, and Rosneftegaz), and Russian individuals (including Gazprom Chairman Dmitri Medvedev, Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko, and Rosneft Chairman Igor Sechin). Collectively, the 43 Plaintiffs purchased approximately 135,000 YUKOS ADRs, representing nearly 3.4 million dollars in lost market value. YUKOS ADRs in total have lost approximately six billion dollars ($6,000,000,000.00) in market value.
On March 14, 2006 the Russian Federation had been served with the complaint by the U.S. Department of State under the provisions of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
The lawsuit focuses on two core issues: 1) Through the seizure of the shares of YUKOS' principal owners, unjustified tax levies, and the sham auction of YUKOS' principal asset to a state-owned company, Russia has effectively re-nationalized YUKOS, and has done so without paying any compensation to its owners; and 2) as part of that scheme, the Defendants made misrepresentations directed at the U.S. and global securities markets, falsely assuring the investing public that the Kremlin did not intend to re-nationalize YUKOS.
The lawsuit brings claims based on: 1) the Defendants' unlawful "conversion" of the Plaintiffs' property (common law conversion), 2) the Defendants' racketeering activity (specifically, the Defendants' transportation of converted property (oil and gas) in interstate or foreign commerce and commission of wire fraud (via false assurances made to the investing public), and conspiracy to engage in such racketeering activity (RICO)), and 3) the Defendants' fraudulent misrepresentations made to the investing public (securities fraud and common law deceit).
Read a complete copy of the complaint »
Read the Amended Complaint »
Read media coverage on this issue »
If you are a minority shareholder who purchased YUKOS ADRs prior to January 2005, you may be eligible to take other legal actions. For more information, please contact:
Michael Hunter
YUKOS Minority Shareholder Coalition
(973) 218-2510
hunter@YukosShareholderCoalition.com
The attorneys representing the plaintiffs are not being compensated by the plaintiffs nor are they being paid on a contingency fee basis, so the proceeds of any damages that should be awarded to the plaintiffs will go entirely to them, not to their attorneys.
|
