The University of California today (Jan. 23) filed a motion seeking court permission to amend its complaint in the Enron securities case to add private, non-class, state-law claims against Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse First Boston and Barclays. UC would pursue the private state claims, which cannot be asserted on a class-wide basis, only if the currently pending federal class claims are dismissed.

"The university will continue to aggressively pursue additional recoveries on behalf of the entire class of defrauded Enron investors," said Charles Robinson, UC's general counsel. "While we believe that there is a strong legal and factual basis for the class-wide claims we have asserted against these defendants, this amendment is intended to preserve an avenue of recovery should the class claims not prevail."

Federal statutes governing the lawsuit limit the university to pursuing only federal-law claims on behalf of the class. Individual investors may, however, assert non-class claims under state law, which provides additional legal grounds for the defendants' liability. The amended complaint asserts claims under Texas law which are based on the same misconduct alleged in the class action.

Claims were still pending against several remaining defendants in the federal class action lawsuit when, in March 2007, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the District Court's ruling that certified the case as a class action. [Regents of the University of California et. al. v. Credit Suisse First Boston (USA), Inc. et. al., No. 06-20856, Opinion and Order (5th Cir. March 19, 2007)]. In January 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the Fifth Circuit's decision, and the case was returned to the District Court for further proceedings.

On behalf of the class, the university has offered an alternative legal theory under which a class action may proceed against Barclays Bank, Credit Suisse First Boston and Merrill Lynch, three of the defendants against which the case was previously set for trial. That theory is currently under consideration by the court.

Additional defendants in the case which was set for trial include, three former Enron officers -- Jeff Skilling, CEO; Richard Causey, chief accounting officer; and Mark Koenig, executive vice president of investor relations. The cases against Royal Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Scotland and Toronto Dominion Bank have not been set for trial.

Settlement and allocation plan: To date, UC has obtained more than $7 billion for Enron investors, including $2.4 billion from Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, $2.2 billion from JPMorgan Chase, $2 billion from Citigroup, $222.5 million from Lehman Brothers, $69 million from Bank of America, $168 million from Enron's outside directors, $32 million from Andersen Worldwide, $11.5 million from Goldman, Sachs & Co., and $10.2 million from the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. UC also secured a distribution of $51 million for investors through the bankruptcy proceeding for the LJM2 partnership involved in the Enron scheme.

Last month, almost $5 billion of the recovered funds was distributed to approximately 200,000 victims of the Enron fraud, including both individual investors and large institutions such as pension funds. The settlements cover numerous distinct securities types affected by the underlying alleged fraud. The distribution was calculated in accordance with the allocation plan that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas approved in September 2008.

Under the allocation plan, eligible investors must have purchased an Enron or Enron-related security between Sept. 9, 1997, and Dec. 2, 2001, and must have submitted a timely claim form. The deadline for investors to file claims to be included in the distribution of settlement funds was Nov. 10, 2008. The actual recovery received by class members depends on which Enron securities they purchased and the timing of their purchases and sales, as well as other factors.

The initial distribution was a partial payment to most eligible claimants. The distribution is being conducted in stages because some claims remain in process due to the tremendous number of claims filed and their unique and complex nature. The court-appointed claims administrator, Gilardi & Co., has calculated distribution amounts in accordance with the approved plan. While additional distributions are anticipated, their timing and amount remain to be determined. Additional information for investors about the distribution is available at www.Gilardi.com/Enron/Securities.

Investors with questions should email classact@gilardi.com or write to Enron Corporation Securities Litigation, c/o Gilardi & Co. LLC, P.O. Box 808003, Petaluma, CA 94975-8003.

For more news and information about the Enron case: www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/enron