A Houston federal judge allowed a securities class action case against BP plc to go forward. The litigation stems from alleged misrepresentations made to investors about the success and scope of BP’s process safety efforts, as well as false claims about its oil spill response capabilities in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison, of the Southern District of Texas, ruled on February 6, 2013 that most of the claims asserted in the lawsuit can proceed to discovery.
The decision came after a hearing in November 2012 on BP’s motion to dismiss in a class action lawsuit filed by the New York State Common Retirement Fund, among others. The Fund, as co-lead plaintiff, represents a class of investors who purchased BP’s American Depositary Shares from November 8, 2007 through and including May 28, 2010.
