Monday, March 26, 2007

Pack Your Bags, We're Going to Lagos

The following was first published on 3/12 over at Securities Litigation Watch, my new blog.

If you want current postings and updates on the wide world of securities litigation, I encourage you to update your bookmarks and subscriptions.

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The SCAS Research team informs me that a securities class action has been filed against Cadbury Schweppes Plc's Nigerian subsidiary, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, in what is believed to be the first securities class action ever filed in Nigeria.

The class action relates to the revelations by Cadbury last December that it had discovered "a significant and deliberate overstatement of Cadbury Nigeria results, which had existed over a number of years” after increasing its stake in the Nigerian subsidiary.

The Times of London has a story, here.

One of the plaintiffs in the Nigerian class action is Nsongurua Udombana, a professor of international law at the University of Lagos. According to the Times, Professor Udombana and his fellow plaintiffs "are trying to see if we can establish a precedent and start something that could bring a revolution in corporate governance in Nigeria."

Though best known to many as the producer of the seasonally appropriate Cadbury Creme Egg, the company produces a host of well known brands, from Trident to Dr. Pepper. Cadbury also produces regional brands, such as Bournvita, the "biggest selling food drink in Nigeria."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Jack Payne said...

Is there really any justice in Nigeria? With the wild unloading of some $2 billion in bogus checks on the U.S. alone last year, this is hard to believe.

I write extensively on scams of every kind. About the most transparent to spot are anything coming out of Nigeria. Yet, the suckers in the good old U.S. of A. keep falling for these. it seems, in ever increasing numbers.