WATERLOO, ON, April 7,
2022 /CNW/ -- BlackBerry Limited (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB)
announced today that it has reached an agreement in principle to
settle the consolidated securities class action lawsuit captioned
Pearlstein v. Blackberry Limited, et al., Case No. 13 Civ.
7060 (CM) (KHP) pending against the Company and certain of its
former officers in the U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York. The consolidated class action complaint
was filed in October 2013, as
described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 1, 2022.
The agreement in principle was reached following a voluntary
mediation process resulting in the parties' acceptance of the
mediator's recommendation for settlement. The court has
granted the parties' jointly request to adjourn further proceedings
in the matter pending approval of the final settlement.
The agreement in principle contemplates an aggregate cash
payment by the Company of $165
million to settle the claims brought on behalf of all
persons who purchased or otherwise acquired BlackBerry shares on
the NASDAQ between March 28, 2013 and
September 20, 2013. The parties
have agreed to negotiate in good faith to execute a definitive
stipulation of settlement and related documents to be filed with
the court. The Company anticipates that the stipulation of
settlement will provide a full release of all claims against all
defendants, including the Company and its officers, and will
expressly deny any liability, wrongdoing or responsibility by any
of the defendants. The Company anticipates that, upon final
approval of the settlement, the litigation will be dismissed with
prejudice. Approval by the court, notice to the putative
class, and the satisfaction of customary conditions to
effectiveness may take several months.
While BlackBerry believes that the allegations in the case were
without merit, it also believes that eliminating the distraction,
expense and risk of continued litigation is in the best interests
of the Company and its shareholders.
As previously disclosed, given the uncertainties of litigation,
BlackBerry had not been in a position to assess the likelihood of
any potential loss or adverse effect on its financial condition or
to reasonably estimate the amount of potential loss in connection
with the class action. As a result of the entry into the agreement
in principle, BlackBerry expects that the above-referenced
$165 million will be incorporated
into its results of operations and financial condition for the
fiscal quarter ending May 31,
2022. The Company does not expect to recover any portion of
this amount from insurance proceeds.
About BlackBerry
BlackBerry (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB) provides intelligent security
software and services to enterprises and governments around the
world. The company secures more than 500M endpoints including 195M vehicles. Based in Waterloo, Ontario, the company leverages AI
and machine learning to deliver innovative solutions in the areas
of cybersecurity, safety, and data privacy solutions, and is a
leader in the areas of endpoint security, endpoint management,
encryption, and embedded systems. BlackBerry's vision is
clear - to secure a connected future you can trust.
BlackBerry. Intelligent Security. Everywhere.
For more information, visit BlackBerry.com and follow
@BlackBerry.
Investor Contact:
BlackBerry Investor Relations
+1 (519) 888-7465
investor_relations@blackberry.com
Media Contact:
BlackBerry Media Relations
+1 (519) 597-7273
mediarelations@blackberry.com
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of certain securities laws, including under the U.S.
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable
Canadian securities laws, including statements regarding the
agreement in principle to settle the pending class action lawsuit,
BlackBerry's expectations regarding the likelihood, terms,
conditions and timing of the anticipated settlement, and other
statements that are not purely historical facts.
These statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties,
including, among others, risks and uncertainties associated with
negotiating final terms of settlement agreements, obtaining court
approval of the proposed settlements, the number of purported class
members who may opt-out of the proposed settlements, whether any
proposed settlement is appealed, and the timing of the settlement
payments. There can be no assurance that the litigation
will
be finally resolved in accordance with the agreements in
principle or at all. For a further description of the risks and
uncertainties relating to the business of the Company in general,
see the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the year ended February 28,
2022. All of these factors should be considered carefully and
readers should not place undue reliance on BlackBerry's
forward-looking statements.
Any forward-looking statements are made only as of the date
hereof and the Company has no intention and undertakes no
obligation to update or revise any of them, except as required by
law.
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SOURCE BlackBerry Limited