Bally Total Fitness Securities Litigation
Berger Montague is Lead Counsel in this securities fraud class action involving Bally Total Fitness Holding Corporation (“Bally”). The case involves three groups of defendants: (1) Bally; (2) three of Bally’s former officers (collectively the “Individual Defendants”); and (3) Bally’s auditor, Ernst & Young LLP. Bally was released from liability due to its bankruptcy.
The Class includes all persons or entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Bally common stock between August 3, 1999 and April 28, 2004.
The lawsuit alleges that Bally and the Individual Defendants reported false financial results in Bally’s publicly disseminated financial statements for nearly five years, leading to two separate restatements of the financial statements. The restatements involved two-dozen separate categories of misstatements.
The lawsuit alleges that Bally and the Individual Defendants intentionally or recklessly overstated revenue and net income, understated expenses, and misrepresented that Bally’s financial statements were presented in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The lawsuit also alleges that Ernst & Young performed reckless audits and issued false audit opinions regarding Bally’s financial statements.
The case has been settled. The District Court granted final approval of the settlement in 2010.
