Harman Int’l Sees Revived Fraud Claims Over Statements About Financial Condition

Harman International Industries Inc. and three top executives were dealt a setback June 23, as a federal appeals court revived would-be class securities fraud claims they propped up the company’s stock price by making materially misleading statements about the audio products maker’s financial condition (In re Harman Int’l Ind. Secs. Litig., 2015 BL 199009, D.C. Cir., 14-7017, 6/23/15).

Two forward looking statements regarding strong futures sales of Harman’s personal navigational devices weren’t entitled to safe harbor protection, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held. It reasoned that the accompanying cautionary language didn’t ...