Judge Dismisses NYSE as Defendant in Suit

NEW YORK -- The New York Stock Exchange was dismissed as a defendant Tuesday in three lawsuits accusing seven trading firms and the NYSE of fraudulently costing the nation's largest public pension funds millions of dollars a year, The Associated Press reported.

U.S. District Judge Robert W. Sweet said he relied on reasoning in an earlier securities case in concluding the NYSE was entitled to the same immunity enjoyed by the Securities and Exchange Commission when it was performing duties assigned by the SEC.

Sweet ruled in lawsuits brought on behalf of plaintiffs led by the California Public Employees' Retirement System and Empire Programs Inc. (CalPERS), a Saddle River, N.J. corporation.

The lawsuits by CalPERS and other huge public pension funds controlling hundreds of billions of dollars in nine states had alleged that the NYSE deliberately failed to supervise and discipline seven specialist firms. They sought unspecified damages.

-- NYSSCPA.org News Staff

Posted on 12/14/05