Overview
This is a securities fraud class action that was brought on behalf of all purchasers of Wells Fargo & Company (“Wells Fargo” or the “Company”) securities between February 2, 2018 and March 12, 2020, inclusive (the “Class Period”). The case alleged claims under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against Wells Fargo and certain of its executive officers and directors (collectively, “Defendants”).
Lead Plaintiffs Have Settled the Action for $1 Billion
Lead Plaintiffs Handelsbanken Fonder AB; Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi; State of Rhode Island, Office of the General Treasurer; and Louisiana Sheriffs’ Pension & Relief Fund, on behalf of themselves and the Settlement Class, have settled the Action for $1,000,000,000 in cash (the “Settlement”). The Settlement resolves all claims in the Action.
On September 8, 2023, the Court held a hearing to consider final approval of the Settlement and other matters. At the hearing, the Court approved the Settlement and Plan of Allocation and Lead Counsel’s motion for attorney’s fees and litigation expenses. The same day, the Court entered a Judgment Approving Class Action Settlement, an Order Approving Plan of Allocation of Net Settlement Fund, and an Order Awarding Attorneys’ Fees and Litigation Expenses.
If you are a member of the Settlement Class, your rights will be affected and you may be eligible for a payment from the Settlement.
The Settlement Class consists of:
- all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired the common stock of Wells Fargo during the Class Period (i.e., from February 2, 2018 through March 12, 2020, inclusive), and were damaged thereby.
Certain persons and entities are excluded from the Settlement Class by definition (see paragraph 17 of the Notice) or by request.
The Notice and Claim Form can be found in the Case Documents list on the right of this page. You may also visit the case website, WellsFargoSecuritiesClassAction.com, for more information about the Settlement.
Background and History of the Litigation
In 2018, Wells Fargo’s regulators imposed unprecedented consent orders on Wells Fargo designed to halt the Company’s decades-long, fraudulent banking practices and rectify the severely deficient corporate oversight that allowed those fraudulent practices to develop and endure (the “2018 Consent Orders”). Lead Plaintiffs allege that, during the Class Period, Wells Fargo falsely told and misleadingly omitted from investors material information regarding its compliance with the 2018 Consent Orders, claiming that it had regulator-approved “plans” and that it was “in compliance” with the 2018 Consent Orders.
Lead Plaintiffs allege that, in reality, Wells Fargo’s compliance and oversight overhaul could not even get off the ground, and that Wells Fargo had yet even to submit to regulators an acceptable plan or schedule and was nowhere near meeting the regulators’ requirements that were a predicate to lifting the severe measures that had been imposed on the Bank.
Lead Plaintiffs further allege that a series of revelations, including damning congressional hearings and reports, finally revealed to the market that the Bank had blatantly disregarded the basic requirements set forth in the 2018 Consent Orders and made numerous misrepresentations to the public about its compliance with those orders. Lead Plaintiffs allege that the truth also forced the ousting of the Bank’s CEO, Defendant Timothy J. Sloan (“Sloan”), and a number of its Directors, and forced the Bank and its new Board of Directors to claw back $15 million of Sloan’s compensation, and led the Chairwoman of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services (the “House Financial Services Committee”) to send a formal letter to the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) recommending criminal action against Sloan for his inaccurate and misleading public statements. Following these disclosures, the price of Wells Fargo’s common stock dropped significantly.
- On August 29, 2020, the Court appointed Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi; State of Rhode Island, Office of the General Treasurer; Louisiana Sheriffs’ Pension & Relief Fund; and Handelsbanken Fonder AB as Lead Plaintiffs, and Cohen Milstein as co-Lead Counsel.
- Lead Plaintiffs filed their amended complaint on November 9, 2020. Defendants filed their motion to dismiss on January 22, 2021, and Lead Plaintiffs opposed that motion. On September 30, 2021, Judge Woods largely denied Defendants’ motion and upheld the complaint.
- Following the Court’s Order resolving Defendants’ motion to dismiss, the Parties conducted extensive discovery which included, among other things, the production of more than 3.9 million pages of documents by Defendants, third-party witnesses, and Lead Plaintiffs.
- On May 8, 2023, the Parties entered into the Stipulation and Agreement of Settlement, which sets forth the terms and conditions of the Settlement.
- On May 16, 2023, the Court preliminarily approved the Settlement, authorized notice of the Settlement to be disseminated to potential Settlement Class Members, and scheduled the Settlement Hearing to consider whether to grant final approval to the Settlement for September 8, 2023. On July 26, 2023, the Action was reassigned to the Honorable Jennifer L. Rochon.
- On September 8, 2023, the Court held a hearing to consider final approval of the Settlement and other matters. At the hearing, the Court approved the Settlement and Plan of Allocation and Lead Counsel’s motion for attorney’s fees and litigation expenses. The same day, the Court entered a Judgment Approving Class Action Settlement, an Order Approving Plan of Allocation of Net Settlement Fund, and an Order Awarding Attorneys’ Fees and Litigation Expenses.
- In July 2024, the Court-appointed claims administrator completed the claims administration process.
- On July 29, 2024, Lead Counsel filed a Motion for Approval of the Distribution Plan, seeking the Court’s approval to distribute the net settlement fund. The Motion is currently pending before the Court. Once the Court approves the Motion, the distribution of the net settlement fund will occur within 4 – 8 weeks.