Bear, Stearns & Co. makes announcement

Business Wire, Nov 18, 1996

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 18, 1996--Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. announced today that it has filed a complaint in the Supreme Court of the State of New York against D.F. King & Co., Inc., Thomas S. Cronin, an employee of D.F. King, and other unnamed employees of D.F. King. The complaint alleges that Cronin, while employed by D.F. King, placed telephone calls to a Bear Stearns office and, falsely identifying himself as a Bear Stearns employee from another Bear Stearns office, obtained confidential information concerning recent securities transactions and the identities of Bear Stearns' customers.

Bear Stearns has alleged that the conduct violated civil and criminal law, including provisions prohibiting schemes to defraud, theft and misappropriation of valuable property, criminal impersonation, the use of unfair and deceptive devices in the conduct of business, unfair competition and tortuous interference with Bear Stearns' contractual and business relations.

In a September 1991 Settlement Agreement, D.F. King gave assurances to Bear Stearns that it would use its best efforts to ensure that its employees followed certain procedures when seeking to obtain information concerning Bear Stearns' customers and/or customer transactions. The complaint alleges that these assurances were violated.

Bear Stearns is seeking an injunction requiring D.F. King and its employees to comply with the assurances given in 1991, and prohibiting them from making any further attempts to misappropriate Bear Stearns' confidential, proprietary and non-public information. Bear Stearns also seeks compensatory and punitive damages in an amount to be determined at trial.

This legal action reflects Bear Stearns' continued commitment to protecting and maintaining the confidentiality of its customers' securities transactions and financial affairs.

CONTACT: Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., New York

Hannah Burns, 212/272-2395

or

Maura Gaenzle, 212/272-4445