Fraud Suit Against NYSE Chief Proceeds
A fraud and breach of fiduciary duty lawsuit against New York Stock Exchange Chief Executive John Thain has been given permission to proceed. However, the charges in the lawsuit against the New York Stock Exchange itself have been dismissed. The case has been in stalemate since 2005, when an NYSE seatholder said that Thain lied about the NYSE's future merger with Archipelago at a meeting. The seatholder says that the NYSE and Thain both misled shareholders about the future of the exchange.
Four seatholders have sued both the NYSE and Thain, asking for damages for lost gains in the sale of their seats. One seatholder sold her seat for $1.54 million weeks before the merger was announced in March 2005. However, once the merger was announced, seats escalated in price to as much as $3.25 million. The trial is set for September.
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