Shareholder Lawsuit Filed Against SFBC International, Inc., Berman DeValerio Pease Tabacco Burt & Pucillo Announces
January 18 2006 - 6:10PM
PR Newswire (US)
MIAMI, Jan. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- An investor sued SFBC International,
Inc. ("SFBC" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:SFCC) today in federal
court, accusing the Company of securities law violations, Berman
DeValerio Pease Tabacco Burt & Pucillo announced. Berman
DeValerio (http://www.bermanesq.com/) filed the class action in the
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, as
06-CV-20120 . The complaint seeks damages for violations of federal
securities laws on behalf of all investors who purchased SFBC
common stock between February 17, 2004 and December 15, 2005,
inclusive (the "Class Period"). To receive a copy of the complaint,
you may contact the court, call the firm at (800) 516-9926 or go to
http://www.bermanesq.com/pdf/sfbc-cplt.pdf. The lawsuit claims that
SFBC and a number of individual defendants violated Sections 10(b)
and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"),
15 U.S.C. Sections 78j(b) and 78t, and SEC Rule 10b-5, 17 C.F.R.
Section 240.10b-5, promulgated thereunder. SFBC conducts clinical
research and provides drug development services, including human
testing for drug trials, for pharmaceutical and biotech companies.
According to the complaint, the defendants engaged in improper
recruiting of drug trial participants during the Class Period.
Rather than disclose the truth about their improper recruiting
practices and administration of drug protocols, the complaint
states, the defendants issued a series of false and misleading
statements and made material omissions regarding SFBC's business
conditions, prospects and financial results from these trials. The
plaintiffs maintain that these statements and omissions
artificially inflated the value of the Company's stock during the
Class Period and allowed the defendants to obtain substantial
bonuses and salaries. The publication of a Bloomberg News
investigative article November 2, 2005 began a chain of revelations
about SFBC that culminated on December 15, 2005, when the Company
announced the results of an investigation by two outside law firms.
Among other things, the news articles and law firm investigation
revealed that the defendants had failed to disclose that: * SFBC
had used payment schemes to discourage drug trial participants from
reporting uncomfortable or adverse reactions to drug tests, thus
assuring the manufacturers' continuation of the tests. * SFBC
officials had threatened to deport some drug trial participants who
were undocumented aliens. * There were inherent conflicts of
interest in the Company's management structures and regulatory
controls, including the fact that one of its Institutional Review
Boards was owned an SFBC executive's wife. * The Company's vice
president of legal affairs had a history of run-ins with regulatory
agencies and has a close relationship with SFBC's Chairman of the
Board, who substantially benefited from the sale of artificially
inflated SBFC stock. * SFBC's chairman was never licensed to
practice medicine in the United States, though the Company
repeatedly described her as a medical doctor in its literature and
SEC filings. From the day Bloomberg published its first article
November 2, 2005 until December 15, 2005, the Company's stock price
fell more than 60%, from $41.49 to $15.78. If you purchased SFBC
common stock between February 17, 2004 and December 15, 2005,
inclusive, you may wish to contact the following attorneys at
Berman DeValerio Pease Tabacco Burt & Pucillo to discuss your
rights and interests. Michael J. Pucillo, Esq. Jay W. Eng, Esq.
Esperante Building 222 Lakeview Avenue, Suite 900 West Palm Beach,
FL 33401 (561) 835-9400 If you wish to apply to be lead plaintiff
in this action, a motion on your behalf must be filed with the
court no later than March 6, 2006. You may contact the attorneys at
Berman DeValerio to discuss your rights regarding the appointment
of lead plaintiff and your interest in the class action, or you may
submit information online at
http://www.bermanesq.com/Securities/Signup1.asp?caseid=564. Please
note, you may also retain counsel of your choice and need not take
any action at this time to be a class member. Berman DeValerio
Pease Tabacco Burt & Pucillo prosecutes class actions
nationwide on behalf of institutions and individuals, chiefly
victims of securities fraud, antitrust law violations, and consumer
fraud. The firm has 34 lawyers in Boston, San Francisco and West
Palm Beach. Contact: Jay W. Eng, Esq., (561) 835-9400 First Call
Analyst: FCMN Contact: DATASOURCE: Berman DeValerio Pease Tabacco
Burt & Pucillo CONTACT: Jay W. Eng, Esq. of Berman DeValerio
Pease Tabacco Burt & Pucillo, +1-561-835-9400 Web site:
http://www.bermanesq.com/
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